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TO BE KEPT UNDER LOCK AND KEY.

It is requested that special care may be taken to nexure the secrecy of document

THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF

SECRET

C.O.S.(41) 725

This document was considered at

JESTY'S GOVERNMENT)

© 0.86) 4130

COPY NO.

meeting.

33

5TH DECEMBER, 1941.

WAR CABINET

CHIEFS OF STAFF COMMITTEE

1.

OIL SUPPLIES IN THE EASTERN AREA

Tanker position in certain eventualities.

Note by the Secretary for Petroleum.

At a recent meeting, the Oil Control Board decided to draw the attention of the CHIEFS OF STAFF to the very serious extra burden that would be put on our tanker fleet in certain contingencies.

2.

The following states briefly the position which would arise if there was any interference with our sources of supply assuming consumption in the various consuming countries remained unchanged.

3. Haifa and Suez refineries.

The loss of the use of the Haifa and/or Suez refineries

The could be offset by increased production at Abadan. longer hauls involved, however, would increase the number

Should Kirkuk, the of tankers required by about 20. pipeline and loading berths at Haifa remain intact this number could be substantially reduced since fuel oil could be pumped to Haifa.

4. Abadan.

The destruction of Abadan refinery and loading facilities in addition to Suez and Haifa would necessitate drawing (in addition to extra quantities from N.E.I.) some 3 million tons of oil from the Netherlands West Indies or Gulf and over 1 million tons from California involving an increase of

If, however, about 50 in the number of t ankers required. the main fields at Masjid-i-Suleiman and Haft Kel, the pipeline, and also the loading berths at Abadan remained intact oil fuel could be pumped direct from fields to tankers and the extra number of tankers required would be reduced to about 30.

5. Netherlands East Indies.

In the event of the loss of the use of the Netherlands East Indies refineries the substantially increased quantities that would require to be drawn from Abadan and California would involve the use of over 50 tankers more than under the existing supply programme.

6. Haifa, Suez, Abadan and N.E.I.

The loss of the use of all these refineries would mean that almost the entire oil requirements of the East would have to be supplied from N.W.I. or Gulf (about 5 million tons) and California (about 7 million tons) involving

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