A History of Phillips Pertroleum by Wes Phillips, 1927 - 1987


Phillips Petroleum Company was founded in 1917 and produced over 1560 products in the Borger Area and is a major producer in Petrochemicals as well. Phillips manufactures nitrogen fertilizer, synthetic rubber, carbon black, polyolefin plastics and cycle hexone used in the manufacture of nylon. It also manufactures and sells synthetic fibers, fabricated plastic products and packaging. There are 8 Phillips operations in the Borger area.

Phillips Pipeline Hub
Crude Oil Refinery
Natural Gas Liquids Center
Philtex plant
Butadienne Plant
Copolymer Plant
Carbon Black Plants


1927- 1937

By 1927 the petroleum market was glutted, and Phillips faced the problem of finding outlets for its growing production of oil, gas, and natural gasoline. Frank Phillips decided the best solution was to diversify into refining and marketing. In November 1927, Phillips began operating its first refinery -- a small plant near Borger, Texas, which was rapidly expanded. Later that same month the company opened its first service station in Wichita Kansas.

Phillips pushed into the competitive business of gasoline marketing with aggressive and imaginative efforts…some based on its achievements in aviation fuels. It had a superior gasoline developed by a brilliant research team… By the start of 1930, Phillips gasoline was being sold through 6,750 outlets in 12 states. During the same time, the company pioneered the whole business of liquefied petroleum gas production and sales.

Then came the effects of the Great Depression. This hit Phillips hard. But even in the Depression's depths, the company moved forward. In 1930 it merged with Independent Oil and Gas Company, which resulted in more producing properties, refineries and other facilities. In the 1930s Phillips became a major operator in the huge Oklahoma City field.

By 1937 the nation's economy had recovered and Phillips was thriving. Its 1937 net income of $24.1 million was the best ever.

1937 - 1947

In the late 1930s and early 1940s, Phillips made several research and engineering breakthroughs, mainly in raw materials for synthetic rubber and in high-octane aviation gasolines.

As a result of these breakthroughs, the company by 1943 had designed, built, and begun operating vital war facilities in the Borger area. They included a large butadiene plant, the world's first plant to make carbon black from oil instead of natural gas and the first hydrofluoric alkylation plant to make large amounts of high-octane aviation gasoline.

Even Philgas, the company's LP-gas, went to war, providing an ideal heat source for the manufacture of a variety of military equipment.

Phillips employees pitched in vigorously to help win the war on both the fighting and home fronts. Some 3,000 served in the armed forces. Others conducted scrap drives, had "victory gardens," bought war bonds and served on key government war bodies. Women took over many of the jobs of men in the service.

At the same time, Phillips continued to explore for and acquire new petroleum supplies…particularly natural gas. Toward the end of the decade, the company was playing a major role in the creation of the interstate natural gas transmission industry. Phillips was also beginning its first ventures outside the U.S. and in the Gulf of Mexico.

1947 - 1957

During this period Phillips grew faster on the basis of assets than any other oil company. This growth was stimulated by Phillips potent position in not just one, but three industries -- petroleum, natural gas, and chemicals.

In petroleum, the company expanded its activities into several foreign countries, found numerous fields offshore of Louisiana and Texas and began exploring in Alaska. The company refining capacity was more than doubled by acquisition of refineries in south Texas and the Northwest.

Phillips huge natural gas reserves in the Texas Panhandle and southwestern Kansas enables the company to supply large amounts of gas to new interstate transmission lines which threaded to cities such as Chicago and Detroit.

But Phillips greatest surge of growth during this period was in chemicals. A government boatyard on the Houston Ship Channel was turned into a major chemical complex. Fertilizers, synthetic rubber, intermediate chemicals such as ethylene and specialty chemicals of all kinds poured from this and other new company facilities.

The biggest breakthrough was discovery and development of marvel Marlex polyethylene plastics beginning in the early 1950s.

1957 - 1967

During this period Phillips greatly expanded its activities in the areas of exploration, marketing and chemicals. Intensified exploration led to petroleum production from such far-flung nations as Canada, Venezuela, Libya, Iran, Egypt and Algeria.

Phillips marketing strategy in the late 1950s involved a push to have service stations in all 50 states, a goal reached in 1967.

In chemicals, Phillips began to manufacture a variety of finished products. These included plastic coated papers and films, high-density polyethylene pipe and fittings, all sorts of injection molded plastic products and dairy and food containers. Many part-interest plants in other countries were built to make carbon black, plastics and other chemicals.

1967 - 1987

Ekofisk was a project of greater magnitude than the company had ever before attempte4d. And when peak production was reached in 1980 the seven Ekofisk fields contributed more than a third of the company's entire energy production.

Much of the Ekofisk development in Norway occurred during a period of turmoil in the world oil market. The Arab oil embargo of 1973 and sharp increases in oil prices by OPEC members caused supply disruptions and economic hardships for many. However, these developments also led to increased exploration activity in the United States and accelerated development of alternate energy projects. Phillips launched coal, oil, shale, geothermal and solar energy projects during this period. Conservation and a worldwide recession reduced energy demand in the 1980s and caused oil prices to fall, but Phillips continued its active exploration program and in its anniversary year participated in the discovery of the giant Point Arguello field off the coast of California. During 1983 Phillips also made the largest acquisition in company history, purchasing the General American Oil Company for $1.14 billion. (Phillips Petroleum Company display)