Over a barrel : government influence and mergers and acquisitions in the petroleum industry : the case of Sun Oil Company, 1938- 1980

Abstract

This dissertation examines the nature of government business relations, as perceived by the owners and managers of the Sun Oil Company, a large integrated oil and gas producer, transporter, refiner, and marketer. Sun has had a long and profitable career in the oil industry, success which came despite a complex, often bitter relationship with government in its regulatory and antitrust capacity. The founding Pew family has historically been quite outspoken in its opposition to what they perceived to be the government's chronic, unwelcome intrusion into the affairs of business. Sun's almost one hundred year history can be readily divided into two distinct phases. The first, the period from 1938-1947, could best be characterized as the time when Sun Company officials fought bitterly against what they thought to be excessive government domination over their industry, fearing either the government's outright takeover, or its imposition of burdensome restrictions. After freeing themselves from the government's oppression, Sun management then set out to build a growing, profitable oil concern. From 1938 to the present, Sun has undertaken several transactions that have established the firm as a highly successful petroleum company, including a merger, an aborted takeover, and a successful acquisition. Sun's survival in an endeavor where many perish, either purchased or driven out, provides the focus of this dissertation.