Zapata Petroleum

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Group.png Zapata Petroleum  Rdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
Formation27 March 1953
FounderGeorge H. W. Bush.jpg George H. W. Bush
Type front
A front company started by George Bush Sr.

Zapata Oil was an oil exploration business set up by George H. W. Bush which was never notably profitable in the usual commercial sense, and seems to have worked more as a front for a range of other operations.

Origins

The company was started with assistance from Allen Dulles and (fellow bonesmen) H. Neil Mallon and Bush's maternal uncle, Herbert Walker, an investment banker, who put up the capital. Walker was instrumental in bringing in others such as Eugene Meyer (owner of the Washington Post, who investments were handled by Brown Brothers Harriman). A CIA internal memo dated November 29, 1975 confirmed that Zapata Petroleum began in 1953 through Bush's joint efforts with Thomas J. Devine, a CIA staffer who had resigned his agency position that same year to go into private business, but who continued to work for the CIA under commercial cover.[1]

Operations

Zapata's "explorations" appear to have been lead more by deep politics than by commercial or geological factors.

By 1963, Zapata Off-Shore had four operational oil-drilling rigs—Scorpion (1956), Vinegaroon (1957), Sidewinder, and (in the Persian Gulf) Nola III.

Purposes

Zapata was never run primarily to make a profit, but more as a cover for intelligence agency operations. Russ Baker notes investors knew that their investment was appreciated by Bush's father, the influential Prescott Bush. A lot more details are available in Russ Baker's Family of Secrets.

 

Related Document

TitleTypePublication dateAuthor(s)Description
Document:George Bush and the CIA In the Company of Friendsarticle1992Anthony KimeryAn overview of Bush's CIA work and related business activity.
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References

  1. Withheld (sanitized, unclassified document), Central Intelligence Agency (November 29, 1975). "Memorandum: To: Deputy Director of Operations; Subject: Messrs. George Bush and Thomas J." NARA Record Number: 104-10310-10271.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").


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