Shell Oil Company

a US oil monopoly. The company engages in petroleum exploration, extraction, and refining; the transportation and distribution of petroleum products; and the production of petrochemical and chemical goods. It is controlled by the Royal Dutch-Shell Group, an Anglo-Dutch monopoly.

The Shell Oil Company was founded in 1922. It extracted petroleum primarily in the United States until the early 1970’s, when it became involved in petroleum prospecting and extraction in Canada, Senegal, Cameroon, New Zealand, and the coastal waters of Malaysia. Shell Oil refines petroleum in the United States and conducts research on the use of alternative energy sources, including bituminous sands and solar energy. In 1975 the company did $8.1 billion worth of business, including 60 percent in petroleum products, 20 percent petroleum, and 15 percent petrochemical and chemical products. Its net profit that year was $555 million. Shell Oil employed 32,500 people in 1975 and extracted 232 million tons of petroleum.