Oil, oil, oil! That’s just about all you hear nowadays. Wars, corruption, money, power, politics, and even scientific inquiry have all revolved around oil. Some people think money makes the world go round, while reality dictates that what makes us go around the world is oil. And the world changed forever when oil was discovered in Saudi Arabia.
On this day, March 3rd, in 1938, natural oil reserves are discovered in Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is one of the largest Arab countries in the world, expanding 830,000 square miles with a population of approximately 27 million. It is the 2nd largest exporter of oil and has the second largest oil reserves.
Saudi Arabia alone pumps over 10 million barrels of oil a day. Its entire economy depends on the oil industry, with 75% of government revenue coming from oil and 90% of export earnings coming from oil as well; however, Saudi Arabia is striving to diversify into alternative energies to remain powerful once its reserves have been emptied, or if the world stops being as dependent upon oil. In 1939, $7 million in revenue came in solely from oil. By 1953, that number had jumped to over $200 million.