Private Empire

Again and again, the depth of reporting conveys varying perspectives on the influence and clout wielded by ExxonMobil and the oil industry. But for oil, Equatorial Guinea, for example, would be forgotten. And, while most Americans would struggle to find it on the map, a small but influential group of diplomats and lobbyists began to take note of the tiny nation during the Bush administration when Exxon made significant investments there. Careful and consistent lobbying, along with hopes of broadening the global oil market, helped win the notorious president (read: dictator) Teodoro Obiang audiences with Colin Powell and, later, Condoleezza Rice.

Coll makes Obiang’s human-rights abuses and atrocities clear while also providing insight into the rationalizations Obiang and others felt when dealing with the American government.

“The oil-endowed autocracies of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates had poor human rights records and hardly a whiff of democracy, yet they were treated in Washington as important strategic partners and received billions of dollars’ worth of sophisticated defense systems – jet fighters, missile interceptors, the works,” Coll writes. “Why not Equatorial Guinea?”

Contrasts between the blunt, cutting Raymond and his more gracious but equally determined successor, Tillerson, provide entrée into Exxon’s disciplined corporate culture. Under Raymond, for example, the company routinely flouted Securities and Exchange Commission rules for defining oil reserves, a key measure for analysts and investors. At the same time, safety guidelines and ethical standards, down to the minute details of employee expense reports, were inviolable.

Raymond, in Coll’s clear-eyed assessment, “chose his own metrics; he declared that other metrics were wrong; he delivered profits; and he ignored criticism.” Market capitalization at Exxon increased to $360 billion from $80 billion during Raymond’s 12-year tenure. Those figures help explain why the company awarded Raymond a retirement package worth $400 million in 2006.

He also enjoyed a rapport with Vice President Dick Cheney and the two men would have private conversations on oil issues from time to time. With a doctorate in chemical engineering and his legacy as a champion debater in high school, the Exxon chief leaped at the chance to rebut any notion of climate change.
The company fought environmentalists in ways large and small. Its tactics included the enlistment of college professors to publish articles in obscure academic journals on topics such as the effectiveness of punitive damages.

Tillerson softened the company stance on global warming after taking over in 2006, but, in other ways, Exxon retains its willing suspension of disbelief, or, more accurately, disclosure. “Private Empire” includes the harrowing tale of a Maryland leak at an Exxon gas station that spilled 24,000 gallons underground during a 6-week period. Instead of relating concerns over the vulnerabilities in an area dominated by water wells used by residents, the company hunkered down. A battalion of trucks and workers encamped at the station, with the following explanation posted on a nearby sign: “Please excuse our appearance. We’re working to serve you better. Fueling facility is temporarily closed for upgrade.”

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