Abadan Crisis

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The Abadan Crisis occurred from 1951 to 1954, after Iran nationalized the Iranian assets of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC) and expelled Western companies from oil refineries in the city of Abadan. Britain was brought close to outright war with Iran, who retained an ally in the United States, hoping Iran would continue as a bulwark against communism. U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower reversed this stance in 1953. As a result of the crisis, Iranian Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh was ousted from power. During the coup, codenamed Operation Ajax, the CIA and the MI6 placed Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi in control of the country. In August 1954, the company was set under the control of an international consortium. Initially, ownership shares in the Consortium proposed to be divided along the following lines: 40% to be divided equally (8% each) among the five major American companies; British Petroleum to have a 40% share; Royal Dutch/Shell to have 14%; and CFP, a French Company, to receive 6%. But American independent oil companies had been interested in beginning operations in Iran for some time and had only done so while the Iranian/AIOC dispute continued. When it became known that independent companies were to be excluded from the consortium, these companies manifested their anger. In response to these complaints, Hoover persuaded the major shareholders to relinquish 5% (or 1% each) of their shares in the consortium to be made available to American independent companies.

Abadan Crisis

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