GERMAN OIL RESERVES

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 85, Issue 188, 12 August 1941, Page 8

GERMAN OIL RESERVES

HOW LONG CAN THEY LAST? DIFFICULTY NEXT SPRING Rugby, Aug. 6. Germany's oil problem is the subject of discussion in London. There is no doubt, according to an official oil expert, that Germany is having to draw on her reserves to a substantial extent and that her situation next spring will become difficult. The German oil position during the

war can be summarised in three com-' plete phases. First, from the opening of the campaign on the Western! Front she was drawing on her re- ‘ serves, but they were reduced reserves. The optimistic Allied fore-j cast, however, was not fulfilled, fori Germany looted Norway, Belgium,! Holland and France. Germany ern- ‘ barked on the second phase with fairly large stocks, but she was faced with the administration of the occupied territories. Her next effort was to obtain control of the Human-! ian oilfields. The tremendous prob-! lem still faced Germany of adminis-j tration ot the occupied territories,! which were not really consumers ex-) cept in so far as the German war > machine was concerned. From July, 1940, till April ot this! year Germany's position was, on a! short view, deteriorating, and be-1 cause of the blocking of the Danube j new supplies were not immediately' available. The third phase was Germany's ex-, pansion into 'Russia, with the obvious 1 motive of securing Russian oilfields.) By victory Germany could see herself in a position largely to solve the problem of oil in Europe, with no material shortage to interrupt Axis activities in the occupied territories. But while there is no doubt that • Germany’s synthetic production of oil ! and ersatz fuel is increasing in areas ■as close as possible to coal supplies i and as far as possible from Britain, ' the fact is that the total intake of oil, actual and synthetic, is only slightly larger than the normal consumption of Germany, Italy and the occupied territory. , An interesting question from the

British angle is; “How long can Germany go on drawing on her capital without reaching a point where distribution breaks down?' 8.0.W.