The first Standard Oil products made their debut in 1893 in Malaya (then a British colony) with the arrival of the SS Clam in the Butterworth docks. Their primary products at the time consisted of oil as fuel for light, lubricants, paraffin and solvents.

The early 1900s heralded boom times for Malaya; in the early 20th century it developed into the world’s biggest tin and rubber producer. Rubber in particular would enjoy soaring demand thanks to the new automotive age, which required rubber for the production of automobile tyres.

By the early 20th century, Malaya was the biggest automobile importer in Asia. This, coupled by a buoyant economy spurred demand for oil products, further catalyzing Standard Oil’s growth in diverse sectors in the industry.

The company reached a significant milestone with the commencement of its first oil exploration in Sarawak. It gradually expanded its activities to oil and gas fields in Sumatra, Sabah and Terengganu.

In 1921, Standard Oil established its first service station in Kuala Lumpur. The single hand-operated pump would serve nearly 2,000 vehicles in the Klang Valley.

In 1933, Standard Oil companies Jersey Standard and Socony-Vacuum merged their Far Eastern operations into an integrated enterprise called Standard Vacuum Oil Company (Stanvac).

Through World War II the company assisted the allies by developing fuel products such as high octane fuel, fog dispersal operations at airfields and pipelines to support amphibious operations. In 1957 it witnessed Malaya’s independence from the British, as well as the establishment of Malaysia in 1963.

In 1960, Stanvac was dissolved by the United States Justice Department in a move to rejuvenate competition in the industry in the region. Socony Vacuum would go on to become Socony Mobil Oil Company and then Mobil Oil Corporation while Jersey Standard would continue to use the trademark Esso (a phonetic rendering of Standard Oil’s initials).

In 1961, Esso Chemical (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (later Exxon Chemical) was established, while in 1963, Esso reinforced its commitment to Malaysia by investing in its very own refinery – the Port Dickson Refinery – a RM50 million project touted as the country’s most ambitious industrial undertaking of its time.

In 1965, Esso Exploration Inc was incorporated and awarded its first oil exploration concessions. Oil was found offshore Sabah in 1971, and Terengganu in 1973.

In 1972, Jersey Standard changed its name to Exxon Corporation and replaced Exxon as an uncontested trademark and company name. However, in Malaysia and other parts of the world, Exxon retained the familiar ‘Esso’ name.

In 1976, Esso signed its first Production Sharing Contract (PSC) with the newly incorporated Malaysian oil and gas corporation, PETRONAS.

Esso has continued to fulfill Malaysia’s oil and gas needs, expanding in both upstream and downstream sectors, fueling the rapidly expanding manufacturing, power and construction sectors among others. 

Recognising the need for vertical integration and benefits of a merger, Exxon and Mobil sealed a definitive agreement to merge and form Exxon Mobil Corporation in 1999. In Malaysia, the Esso and Mobil companies changed their names to ExxonMobil with the exception of Esso Malaysia Berhad, a public-listed company.

Read a more detailed history about Exxon and Mobil in the 20th century on the Corporation's website.