The oil deposits in Dragopsa

The earliest effort to find lipid successful Greece was astatine the land of Zakynthos, western Greece, successful 1865. But the astir absorbing story is possibly the 1 that developed successful Epirus betwixt 1910 and 1940, chiefly due to the fact that of its transportation with the vocation of the archetypal Greek petroleum geologist.



The grounds of the beingness of hydrocarbons successful the valley of the Molitsa River successful Epirus, adjacent  Dragopsa village, had been known since Epirus was portion of the Ottoman Empire. The contented had been brought to the attraction of the Ottoman medication by N. Vasilakis, a doc based successful Ioannina and interpreter for the Romanian consulate there. Vasilakis had travel into interaction with section cognition of the subsoil when a diligent of his, to whom helium had conscionable prescribed rubbing alcohol, asked him if helium could alternatively use “the lipid that comes from her village” for the rubbing.



The doc acted immediately. In 1910, helium submitted a petition to the Ottoman Ministry of Forests and Mines for the concession of the exploitation of the Dragopsa deposits. In 1911, his contacts with Romania and its petroleum know-how brought the manager of the Geological Institute of Romania, Ludovic Mrazek, and his student, Constantin Niculescu. The two geologists considered the country promising and took vantage of the breaks betwixt the successive wars of the pursuing years to proceed their tract studies.

The process was completed instantly aft the extremity of World War I, and the country had present passed into Greek hands. A Greek-French “petroleum syndicate” was founded successful 1919 with its main financing coming from French banks. The wide absorption was taken implicit by Alfred Pouyanne, a mineralogist, erstwhile colonel of the French Army and aboriginal wartime explorer of Dragopsa. Pouyanne exuded optimism; already successful December 1919, “given the results we expect to obtain,” helium requested from the Greek authorities support to physique an lipid refinery successful Piraeus, arsenic well arsenic the exclusive rights to refine lipid within Greek territory for the adjacent 30 years.

The Greek authorities did not stock Pouyanne’s optimism. The bureaus of the Ministry of National Economy deemed the syndicate’s exploration attempts to beryllium “uncertain” and concluded that the syndicate was successful information trying “to unafraid an lipid refinement privilege successful advance.” They judged immoderate statement to beryllium “premature.”

Obviously, the bureaus of the Ministry of National Economy were overmuch little naive than Pouyanne thought them to be. They were besides recently founded; the archetypal Inspector Geologist of the Ministry of National Economy, Georgios Georgalas, was appointed successful December 1918. He had conscionable turned 30 and would subordinate his sanction with the contented of Greek lipid exploration for the adjacent 20 years.

‘New lands,’ caller field

The recently appointed inspector geologist had strong motives for getting progressive successful the developments astatine Dragopsa. On the 1 hand, it was astir oil; the caller wartime applications of the interior combustion motor had transformed lipid from an businesslike airy source chiefly used successful lamps to an plus of progressively strategic importance. On the different hand, it was astir the “new lands”; the geologist who would negociate to supply utile cognition astir the doubled territory would beryllium the – not astatine each widely accepted astatine the clip – applicable value of his subject and would connection an important nationalist service, with evident idiosyncratic benefits. The problem, of course, was that neither Georgalas nor immoderate different Greek geologist had until then delved into the geology of oil.

Fortunately, a suitable teacher σύντομα appeared. In August 1920, Niculescu returned to Dragopsa, starring 25 Romanian drillers, and began exploratory drilling. Georgalas, arsenic the intermediary par excellence betwixt the Franco-Greek Petroleum Syndicate and the Ministry of National Economy, had entree not lone to Niculescu’s reports, but besides to him. Indeed, successful the autumn of 1920, it took the two young geologists six hours riding donkeys to screen “about 16 kilometers of a straight line” that separated Ioannina from Dragopsa. There was ample clip for the improvement of affable relations.

Between 1920 and 1922, Georgalas demonstrated his caller expertise successful a multitude of publications connected Greek petroleum.

The burning question, “Is there lipid successful Greece?” was posed directly, and instantly divided into two parts. The archetypal portion acrophobic the beingness of “underground lipid deposits” and resulted successful an enthusiastic affirmation. The geological similarities with the “hydrocarbon zone of the Carpathians” proved that the “hydrocarbon zone of Western Greece” according to Georgalas was so worthy of its name. The 2nd portion of the question acrophobic the economical viability of the deposits. Here, petroleum geology was mobilized for an ambiguous last conclusion: “estimation is difficult.”

It was rhetoric that combined enthusiasm with prudence and ensured technological prestige successful the lawsuit of failure. In the pursuing years, the inspector geologist would larn to mobilize it much and much effectively.

For investors successful Belgium

In February 1922, the Franco-Greek Petroleum Syndicate abandoned the promising Dragopsa deposits. The reasons for this determination stay unknown but they were apt related to geopolitical considerations, arsenic the Greco-Turkish war successful Asia Minor was arsenic bully arsenic lost, and France was progressively supportive of Turkey. In August 1922, Georgalas traveled to Belgium, seeking investors again astatine the 13th International Geological Congress. His presumption modestly concluded that definite “interesting aboriginal [oil] applications successful Epirus” were, successful immoderate case, “not impossible.” The Greek expeditionary unit successful Asia Minor collapsed a fewer days later.

Oil exploration had go a low-priority undertaking. In 1923 Georgalas submitted his adjacent lipid proposal, not for the well-studied Dragopsas deposits, but for Tavri (formerly Teke), adjacent Alexandroupoli. Despite the rejection of the proposal, Georgalas prevailed successful analyzable disputes and successful 1925 was yet appointed manager of the unified Greek Geological Survey. By then helium had been recognized arsenic the preeminent Greek lipid expert, liable for each calm refutation of the lipid “discoveries” that occasionally graced the news.

The adjacent highest of Greek lipid activities coincided with the imposition of a dictatorship by Ioannis Metaxas. The connection for Tavri was revived. Now, its reasoning could beryllium exposed successful the regular press. As the paper “Oikonomologos Athinon” of August 15, 1936, explained, an lipid find successful Thrace would pb to a struggle betwixt lipid majors such arsenic “Dutch Royal, the Anglo-Persian Company, and Standard [Oil Company of New York] Socony Corporation.” Of these, the archetypal represents the British state and the 2nd the American state, which were the “actual” entities “antagonizing for supremacy implicit Greece.” The explorations successful Thrace would necktie the interests of the Great Powers to a cardinal constituent successful Greek territory. They were much important than a elemental find of lipid would suggest.

The source of this nonfiction and others were, successful each probability, Georgalas. His aged exploration proposals were resurfacing and helium was mentioned by name. Even the titles of the articles were derived by copying the rhetorical question of 1922: “Is there lipid successful Greece?” As helium approached 50 years of age, the manager of the Geological Survey remained unaffected by governmental changes, demonstrating cognition of petroleum geology, consciousness of its governmental aspects, and the rhetorical flexibility required to harvester the two. He had transformed into a nationalist intellectual.


In January 1937, Georgalas was appointed afloat prof of Mineralogy and Petrology of the University of Athens. His inaugural lecture evolved into a superb ceremony, with an “esteemed audience” and the beingness of “his Majesty the Crown Prince.” The decision that [Greece] “certainly possessed lipid deposits, though of unknown quantity and synthesis” was accepted “with vigorous and extended applause.” The title of the lecture was seemingly simple. And yet, it summarized 20 years of applicable experience: “Is There Oil successful Greece?”

Myths and truths

Of each the myths that travel Greek lipid exploration, the astir persistent are those that want the Greek state to beryllium wasting clip and lagging behind, a captive of interests and superior forces. On the contrary, caller humanities probe by the Institute of Mediterranean Studies – FORTH concludes that Greek lipid exploration was carried retired arsenic σύντομα arsenic worldly possibilities and humanities circumstances allowed it to beryllium carried out, usually successful periods of heightened planetary competition.

Subsequently, the results of these explorations, oregon their absence, became the subject of dialog astatine a analyzable crossroads betwixt individual, firm and state interests. These are precisely the characteristics that are besides recovered successful the planetary past of lipid exploration.


Georgalas lived astatine this analyzable crossroads until adjacent his ain respectable reserves of governmental flexibility were exhausted. During the German Occupation helium joined the leftist National Liberation Front (EAM), served arsenic president of its youth wing, EPON and a subordinate of the Political Committee of National Liberation, commonly known arsenic the “Mountain Government.” After the war, these activities would outgo him his university chair.

As for lipid exploration successful Epirus, it has been attempted for implicit a period without tangible results. The astir caller applicable enactment took spot successful 2022. As Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis noted astatine the time, “we indispensable cognize for sure whether there are reserves that are economically exploitable. We will cognize by the extremity of 2023,” arsenic Kathimerini reported. This cautious attack did not forestall the then Energy Minister Kostas Skrekas from saying that “the value of the deposit” is estimated astatine “€5 billion.”

Exactly 100 years had passed since the archetypal Greek lipid geologist had learned to abstracted what we cognize from what we cognize that we bash not know. His rhetoric still protects the cautious.


Gelina Harlaftis is simply a Professor of Maritime History astatine the University of Crete, Director of the Institute for Mediterranean Studies – FORTH.

This text is based connected the probe programme “Searching for lipid successful the Greek territory 1920-1980”, which was conducted astatine IMS-FORTH during 2020-2021 by Dr Christos Karampatsos and a technological team, with Gelina Harlaftis arsenic world advisor.