Lowland Tanker Company facts for kids
| Shipping | |
| Industry | Oil |
| Fate | Defunct |
| Founded | 1950 in United Kingdom |
| Founders | William Keswick & Robert Gillespie |
| Defunct | 1979 |
| Owners |
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The Lowland Tanker Company was a British shipping company. It operated a small group of oil tankers. These ships were used to carry oil for another big company called BP.
History of the Lowland Tanker Company
In 1950, a company called the British Tanker Company (BTC) decided to create a new, separate company. This new company was the Lowland Tanker Company. It was formed to manage and operate ten oil tankers. These ships were used only for carrying oil for BP.
BTC owned half of this new company (50%). The other half was split between two other companies:
- Matheson & Co Ltd, which was part of Jardine Matheson.
- Common Brothers, a shipping company from Newcastle.
Common Brothers was also in charge of managing the ships day-to-day. In the early 1960s, the company bought five more ships.
Later, in 1976, the BP Tanker Company took over all the ships. The BP Tanker Company was the new name for the British Tanker Company. By 1979, BP bought out the shares owned by Matheson and Common Brothers. This meant BP owned the Lowland Tanker Company completely, and it stopped being a separate company.
The Ships of Lowland Tanker Company
The first ten ships built for the Lowland Tanker Company had a traditional design. This meant the ship's bridge (where it's steered) and living areas were in the middle. The engine rooms were at the back.
The last five ships were built with a more modern design. In these ships, all the main buildings, like the bridge and living areas, were at the back. This left the main deck, where the oil tanks were, completely clear.
To make these ships look different from BTC's own ships, they had a special design. A tartan band was painted around their funnels. After the BP Tanker Company took over the ships, they kept the tartan band. But they added the BP logo on top of it.
List of Ships
| Ship | In BTC Service | DWT | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| MV Border Regiment | 1952–1969 | 16,897 | Sold and renamed Fortuity. Scrapped in 1975. |
| MV Border Keeper | 1953–1970 | 16,000 | Disposed of in 1970. |
| MV Border Lass | 1953–1970 | 16,548 | Sold and renamed Mikrasaitis. Resold in 1974 and renamed Juanita H. Scrapped in 1975. |
| MV Border Fusilier | 1954–1970 | 17,405 | Sold and renamed Nemeo. Scrapped in 1975. |
| MV Border Hunter | 1954–1970 | 15,950 | Sold and renamed Nereide. Scrapped in 1975. |
| MV Border Minstrel | 1954–1972 | 17,154 | Scrapped in 1972. |
| MV Border Laird | 1955–1972 | 16,000 | Scrapped in 1972. |
| MV Border Reiver | 1955–1970 | 17,405 | Sold and renamed Nicea. Scrapped in 1976. |
| MV Border Sentinel | 1955–1970 | 15,968 | Sold and renamed Nettuno. Scrapped in 1976. |
| MV Border Terrier | 1956–1972 | 16,028 | Scrapped in 1972. |
| MV Border Pele | 1960–1976 | 20,784 | Sold in 1981 and renamed Five Streams. Scrapped in 1984. |
| MV Border Shepherd | 1960–1976 | 20,914 | Sold and renamed Mariverda IV. In 1983, resold and renamed Al Nabila II. Scrapped in 1993. |
| MV Border Castle | 1961–1976 | 19,925 | Sold and renamed Five Brooks. Attacked and set on fire by Iranian gunboats in 1986. Scrapped in 1987. |
| MV Border Chieftain | 1961–1976 | 19,999 | Sold and renamed Achillett. In 1987, resold and renamed Spiro. Scrapped in 1988. |
| MV Border Falcon | 1961–1976 | 19,949 | Sold and renamed Gardenia B. Scrapped in 1985. |
