Exxonmobile

Historical Overview

ExxonMobil has a rich cultural, ethical, and business history. The company was originally formed in 1870, by John D. Rockefeller and his partners, and was known then as Standard Oil Company. Over a one hundred and twenty five year history, the company has “evolved from a regional marketer of kerosene in the U.S. to the largest publicly traded petroleum and petrochemical enterprise in the world” (ExxonMobil).

Ethically, and in terms of social responsibility, Exxon has come a long way from the choices of its predecessors. Standard Oil was a predecessor to Jersey Standard and Socony, which eventually became the Exxon Corporation in 1972. Standard Oil was notorious in the world of ethics for its close ties to the Nazi supporting company I.G. Farben, a business that endorsed concentration camp labor. Since the 1920’s when ExxonMobil and its predecessors have turned that reputation completely around, and are now known more for the support of the Allied forces during the World Wars. Henceforth, ExxonMobil came to be known as one of the most profitable corporations in history.

In 1955 Jersey Standard established the Esso Education Foundation, which gives aid to private colleges and universities. 1974 was the year that Mobil made synthetic engine oil available for the first time. This is significant because this is a product that you can find on your local auto store’s shelves, and is one of the best-selling motor oils of today. One of the most damaging accidents that hurt ExxonMobil in terms of ethical and social responsibility was the Valdez oil spill of 1989. While this tragic incident reflected very poorly on the company, immediate responsibility was taken, the oil spill was cleaned up, and compensation was paid out to those who had claimed damages. Exxon and Mobile (originally two separate companies) merged to form ExxonMobil in 1996. The purpose was to create an able business combatant in a volatile oil market and industry.

Exxon, by 1982, had been transformed from simply a domestic kerosene refinery and distributor to a huge corporation spread over multiple countries, involved in every level of oil and natural gas exploration, production, refining, marketing, and even petrochemicals manufacturing. Exxon’s research and engineering departments were responsible for the intention of 3-D micro tomography in 1986. This would allow the study of the internal structure of opaque objects without damaging them, something that up until this point had been difficult if not impossible.

 More recently, the corporation has been contributing more to society and chasing more economically sustainable fuels and production methods. In 1995, the Save the Tiger Fund was formed in partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. ExxonMobil has contributed $1 million annually to this foundation. 2007 was an important year for the company, as it drilled the largest well in the world, known as Z-11. As gasoline has been looking less and less like a viable sustainable fuel, 2009 marked the opening of a greenhouse facility for ExxonMobil to begin testing algae in a biofuels developmental program. To conclude, while ExxonMobil is typically seen in a negative light, as a corporation only out for themselves and damaging to the environment, they have made leaps and bounds of progress since their inception over one hundred years ago, and continue to pursue economically sustainable methods within the oil and gas industry.