CH18 : Bentonite

As soon as I stepped inside the factory, it was immediately clear why Gulf had abandoned this place.

The plant's pipes were rusted in various spots.

Refineries operate at high temperatures and emit toxic gases, so they must use stainless steel piping for critical areas. Yet, cheap steel pipes were used haphazardly everywhere.

If these cheap steel pipes were used near the distillation tower (the tower used to filter crude oil), a massive explosion could have blown up the entire plant.

When Gulf realized the plant was shoddily built, they built a new one to ensure their safety.

"But, Mr. Woo. Do they build refineries with steel pipes like this in the U.S.?" Hwang Hyesung asked with an incredulous look on his face.

His expression seemed to say that even the small polymerization reactors at Hyesung Nylon used stainless steel pipes.

"Of course not. Someone on site must have swapped out the stainless steel pipes."

"Swapped them out, you say?"

Someone had embezzled the materials.

This sort of thing was only possible in the corruption-ridden 1960s.

"This kind of factory likely proceeded as a government-contracted project, meaning the construction company conspired with officials to swap out the materials."

Seeing this site of corruption from the 1960s, which OBs spoke of like legends, was utterly shocking.

A government-contracted project, as the name implies, is a public institution-funded construction where the state provides the materials.

According to the OBs, construction companies in the 1960s considered how much they could embezzle from government projects as a measure of their competitiveness, to the point of absurdity.

As long as the building stood, stealing rebar and piping was routine.

"The Americans would never allow such shoddy construction. If something went wrong, this whole area could go up in flames."

"That's why I think it was a government project. Gulf probably presented the design, and a domestic company was contracted to build it. The local contractors and officials likely saw it as an opportunity for mischief."

It seemed our government offered the land and construction as an incentive to attract Gulf initially but ended up giving them a substandard factory.

This led to separating construction, design services, and supervision in Korea through the '60s and '70s.

Of course, shoddy construction didn't disappear entirely. Wherever money is involved, corruption tends to sprout like poisonous mushrooms.

"They wrapped the steel pipes with insulation to hide them, trying to deceive us into thinking they were stainless steel."

"Yes. But the bigger issue is welding pipes made of different materials. If left alone, the corrosion will become uncontrollable. We need to replace all the steel pipes as soon as possible."

Thunk. Thunk! Clang. Clang.

I picked up a steel pipe lying on the ground and knocked on the pipes.

The steel pipes were rusted through with holes, but the stainless steel pipes produced a clear sound, indicating they could still be salvaged.

Most importantly, the distillation tower looked relatively intact.

Even the thieves couldn't have stolen the materials from the distillation tower.

"...Replace them? Mr. Woo, are you seriously thinking of fixing this place up?"

"Why not? Think about it. If we use this plant to polymerize nylon or polyester, we could produce hundreds, no, thousands of tons annually."

Plants like this are heavy and grandiose industries.

Regardless of the product, producing 10,000 tons annually is necessary to be competitive internationally.

In the '60s, I was understating it to a few thousand tons.

"What! Polyester too? And thousands of tons?"

"Imagine. Nylon is already doing so well. What if we start making polyester? The snowball grows bigger as it rolls."

Hwang Hyesung's eyes widened at my words.

It seemed he could see this plant spewing out silver threads.

"Oh... Oh... But isn't this a refinery? To polymerize synthetic fibres, the reactors must be clean. How can we use oil-stained pipes?"

A valid point.

This is why reusing a refinery is challenging.

But, what era are we in?

This is the 1960s in South Korea, with an abundance of labour.

We can dismantle everything, blast it with sand, wash it with soap, and wipe it clean in an extreme display of manual labour.

"We can make a sandblaster."

"Sandblaster?"

"It's a sand spray machine. Attach a nozzle to an air compressor and spray sand. It can scrape off oil residue in no time."

I drew a picture on the ground.

"What an idea."

Hwang Hyesung understood as soon as he saw the drawing.

Making a sandblaster is simple, but it's a powerful machine capable of stripping paint off ships.

Oil residue will fly off instantly.

"Mr. Hwang, let's divide the work. I'll meet with Gulf's branch manager. You go and commission a sandblaster from a nearby ironworks. Also, recruit some welding craftsmen."

"Recruit welding craftsmen too?"

"Of course. We'll pay at least 500 won a day, so gather as many veterans as possible."

"You work so swiftly."

It's all possible because we have enough operating funds.

We received $130,000 from Singapore, and David said I could repay the $100,000 he lent me later.

Additionally, there's a flood of additional orders from Singapore, so there's no problem.

"Strike while the iron is hot."

After the Korea-U.S. summit, investment will pour into the Ulsan petrochemical complex.

This abandoned factory will catch others' attention then, so I must secure it first.

"Considering you're thinking of acquiring this massive factory, you do think big."

Hwang Hyesung looked somewhat worried.

"Are you concerned I might fail? Don't worry. Gulf will be begging me to take this factory."

I already had a weapon to entice Gulf.

I only came across this abandoned factory in the meantime.

This proves you need to inspect the site before working. Information is life in business.

"...Will it really work out like that?"

"Just watch. Let's get going."

"Yes, boss."

Hwang and I immediately parted ways.

He headed toward the ironworks alley, and I drove to the outskirts of the industrial complex.

The expanding outskirts of the complex always have a materials dealer, and I needed something from them to entice Gulf.

'Will this materials dealer have what I need?'

It was a good chance to test my luck.

**

"Ulsan Aggregates"

"Found it easily."

Driving out of the factory's outskirts, I quickly found the materials dealer.

"Excuse me, is the owner here?"

I went straight to the office without hesitation.

"Welcome. What are you looking for?"

"Do you have activated bleaching earth here?"

"Activated bleaching earth?"

"Bentonite."

"Ah! Bentonite? Yes, we do."

Bentonite is usually called activated bleaching earth in Korean, but in the field, it's almost always called bentonite.

Bentonite has many uses: as an additive in cement or paint, for pottery, industrial wastewater coagulation, soil improvement, wool bleaching, and even as cat litter in the 21st century.

It's generally a special sand, but it made a mark in the refining industry.

In the late '60s, it was discovered that mixing bentonite with crude oil increased gasoline and diesel extraction efficiency by over 10%.

Bentonite was a catalyst for refining efficiency.

Later, it was replaced by silica-alumina, a more efficient material, and in the 21st century, by zeolite, a rare earth material with extreme efficiency.

By the 21st century, bentonite was mainly known as cat litter.

In other words, using bentonite to entice Gulf wouldn't negatively impact the future.

On the contrary, if I patent zeolite, Korea's refining technology could compete with the U.S. in the 21st century instead of just being in the top five.

"How much do you have?"

"About 10 tons."

"10 tons..."

10 tons?

"Recently, pottery companies using bentonite went bankrupt in droves. Tsk, who uses pottery nowadays? Everyone's switching to stainless steel..."

The '60s were the '60s.

Stainless steel dishes are seen as more luxurious than pottery.

Anyway, my luck seemed to be piercing the heavens.

To think bentonite was so abundant.

"What's the current price of bentonite?"

"20 won per kilogram."

"Then, how about 10 won per kilogram?"

"What..."

"I'll buy all 10 tons. 100,000 won in total. I'll give you 10,000 won as a down payment."

"Gasp!"

I counted out twenty 500-won bills and handed them over.

Moments like these made me wish we had higher denominations, at least thousand-won bills.

"I'll give you a promissory note for the remaining 90,000 won, so cover the bentonite with a tarp. You can verify the promissory note at Daese Industrial or even at the bank."

I handed the materials dealer my business card.

"Uh... Where should I deliver it?"

"I'll pick it up when needed, so don't worry."

Having it delivered could spread the news that I was buying bentonite.

It was better to be cautious.

"Can I take one sack now?"

"Of course. You paid 10,000 won as a down payment."

The materials dealer bowed deeply, showing respect for my purchase of all the bentonite.

"If there's more bentonite at 10 won per kilogram, I'll buy it. If it's more expensive, I don't need it."

"Oh, you need more bentonite? Then I'll look into it."

"Please do."

The materials dealer seemed to think I was hoarding bentonite and gave me a slightly mocking smile.

Yes, bentonite seemed worthless in the '60s.

Please keep thinking that way.

"To turn bentonite into a catalyst, I need sulfuric acid. Where can I get it?"

I sat in my car, pondering.

To make bentonite into a catalyst, I had to mix it with water and sulfuric acid and stir.

This would perforate the bentonite granules, making them highly reactive with crude oil, like Jeju basalt.

In the 21st century, I could just buy sulfuric acid from a chemical supply store...

"Ah! A plating factory!"

It was the '60s.

Plating factories, notorious polluters, were easy to find.

The thought of enticing Gulf made me smile.

21st-century technology is indeed amazing!

***

Gulf Oil Ulsan Plant Main Gate.

"Gulf Oil"

A company using an orange sun logo.

One of the seven major oil companies worldwide, they build refineries wherever there's money, be it Asia or the Middle East.

"Phew, stay calm, Woo Chansu!"

I took a deep breath at Gulf's main gate.

Although it took time to turn bentonite into a catalyst by adding sulfuric acid, I had plenty of time before the welcome party.

Before meeting the branch manager, I needed to ensure I hadn't missed anything.

Business always needs to be structural and planned, especially when securing investment or starting joint projects.

"Gulf... Gulf... How did it start?"

I traced my memory.

Gulf is both loved and hated in Korea's refining industry.

They were the first foreign investors in Korea's refining industry, paving the way for many foreign companies to invest in Korea. But they also siphoned off a lot of money.

"Gulf would have decided on the investment around this time, right? That's why they're attending the welcome party?"

While Ulsan City held a party ostensibly to welcome the World Bank delegation, the real purpose was to finalize investment negotiations for the Ulsan petrochemical complex with U.S. Department of Commerce representatives and Gulf.

Historically, the Gulf provided a $25 million loan for the Ulsan refinery, equivalent to about 6.8 billion won at the time's exchange rate.

The Korean government invested around 2.5 billion won in the Ulsan refinery, so an American company invested almost three times more than our government.

Officially, it was a commercial loan, but in reality, it was just an investment for equity.

Gulf gained a 50% stake and management rights in the Korean Petroleum Corporation, controlling Korea's oil business.

They used international oil prices as an excuse to raise various oil product prices by 400% at once and even transferred the naphtha business rights of the Ulsan plant to Japan.

From crude oil transport, refining, and distribution of petroleum products, the Gulf had a monopoly in Korea, enabling such actions.

"If the $25 million investment was decided by the headquarters, the branch manager's discretionary power would be around $2.5 million."

The branch manager's discretionary power is usually about one-tenth of the headquarters' decision.

In conclusion, if I could manage the abandoned factory and the naphtha business rights within $2.5 million, I could negotiate with the Korean branch manager.

"Securing the abandoned factory and the naphtha business rights for $2.5 million... It sounds crazy even to me."

A guy with about $200,000 in operating funds attempting a $2.5 million deal seemed laughable.

But I couldn't give up.

This plant business was my field of expertise, and securing the naphtha business rights and the abandoned factory would allow me to soar with both wings.

Securing the naphtha business rights and producing all kinds of synthetic fibres would make an insane amount of money.

It was even a just cause.

Gulf's high-handedness in the '60s and '70s and their outrageous actions when they left Korea in the early '80s, pocketing over 100 billion won from stock disposals, made them the original hit-and-run investors.

Recouping 14 times their initial investment.

It was as bad as the IMF loan sharks. Squeezing Gulf would reduce national wealth outflow.

"Let's go!"

Time to make a big move!