Sharing the Benefits
Sanla thought she had stumbled upon a huge treasure, but after calming down and thinking about it, the treasure's value seemed less than she had imagined, Zul'ra joy immediately waned. 💝😎 ✋👽
Not only are the prices low and sellers hard to find, but the Horde also lacks sufficiently advanced oil refining technology. The only uses for oil are either in the production of weapons that burn oil or as machine lubricants and fuels, all of which are purchased from Goblins, and the demand is not very large.
Developing the oil swamps of Un'Goro would require purchasing equipment and technology from the Goblins. It wouldn't generate profits in the short term and would require additional investment, ultimately only meeting domestic demand. Furthermore, it carries the risk of offending the Goblins.
The Horde currently has a large amount of trade with the Goblins, with oil trade making up a significant portion of it. Although the amount is not large, once the Horde develops the oil swamps of Un'Goro to meet its domestic needs, it will inevitably have to reduce its trade with the Goblins.
In the past, Zul'ra would have developed the oil marshes without hesitation, believing that if others had it, he would have it too. However, with his arms sales to both sides and even his alliance with the Bilgewater Cartel to seize Gadgetzan's oil wells and gold mines in Silithus, the Horde's abrupt reduction in trade with the Goblins might jeopardize their relationship.
Although the Goblins have always maintained trade with the Alliance and have moved closer to the Horde in order to counter the Alliance's power, Zul'ra felt that she could not disrupt this situation too soon. Un'Goro Crater was quite remote in the south, and the Horde currently short-handed. Let alone developing the oil swamp, even protecting it might be a problem.
Faced with numerous problems, Zul'ra made a decision to directly contract the oil marsh to the Goblins, letting Goblins help him develop it, just like how he used the Sandfury Trolls to steal the gold mines and oil wells in Gadgetzan, and then tricked Mardi into going to Northrend to help the Horde mine gold.
Mardi now connects the northern sea routes, providing the Horde with a large amount of timber. Although they did not share in the gold, they, like Gallywix who obtained the Sandfury gold mine and oil wells, delivered a large amount of Almond Coin in foreign exchange.
The Horde's current Almond Coin foreign exchange reserves are more than enough for Zul'ra to pay off his debt to the Goblins, but he didn't do that. Instead, he bought large quantities of ore, and the Horde's reserves of various metal minerals are rising sharply, causing the market prices of various ores to skyrocket.
After careful consideration, Zul'ra finally decided to hand over the Oil Marsh to Ratchet. The Goblins Trade Coalition had no central authority and was merely a rubber stamp. Their power rested entirely with the three Trade Prince, Gallywix, Steamwheedle, and Donais, while Ratchet was part of the Steamwheedle Cartel.
Zul'ra had never been in contact with the wealthy conglomerate of Prince Donais, the Trade Prince. She had heard that they dealt with the Alliance in every way, but because of the rise of the the Scourge in Lordaeron, Dalaran and Lordaeron were destroyed, and they were also taken advantage of by two other companies. Now they have declined too much, and besides trying to survive, their business has also plummeted.
The Horde had the most contact with the Bilgewater Cartel of Gallywix and the Steamwheedle Cartel of Steamwheedle. Compared to the two Cliques, the Horde was closer to the Steamwheedle Cartel because during World War II, the Steamwheedle Cartel clearly sided with the Horde and even fought in the war themselves.
Although the relationship is relatively close, the Steamwheedle Cartel is internally divided into factions. Although the real power is in the hands of Steamwheedle, he must consult the opinions of the barons and tycoons of the major cities under his command. Many tycoons resent the losses they suffered at the hands of the Old Horde, but some are closer to the Horde, such as Gazlowe of Booty Bay and Steamwheedle himself.
The establishment of Orgrimmar, and the loans required for its establishment, were obtained through Gazlowe from the Steamwheedle Cartel, with the help of Gazlowe's engineering team. In return, Gazlowe gifted Gazlowe one of his ports in Kalimdor, which became the precursor to Ratchet.
Ratchet is a stronghold within the Steamwheedle Cartel, but its foundation is too shallow. Its business is limited to transportation and construction, unlike other strongholds that possess abundant resources such as gold mines and oil wells. For this reason, Zul'ra wanted to hand over the oil marshes discovered by the Horde to them for development in order to increase their strength and further divide Steamwheedle Cartel for easier control.
After some deliberation, Zul'ra relayed her ideas to Gazlowe in Ratchet. The Goblins tycoon, though he had received a large transport order, had missed out on the crucial supply orders and was extremely frustrated. Now, upon hearing Zul'ra's sudden offer to take over the oil marshes, he was overjoyed.
Goblins in a commercial society. Commerce is about buying what others sell and selling what others buy—it's all about supply and demand. To gain enough influence in this relationship, you need to have resources to produce. Only with resources can you have the power to adjust commodity prices.
The emerging Goblins groups prioritize resource production. Like Venture Company, they go mining without consulting the Horde, all for the sake of seizing resources. Only by gaining control over commodity prices can they become tycoons. However, their ideas have been brought back to reality by the Horde and the old tycoons. Now, they are still determined to go to Northrend, and we'll have to come back and beat them up someday.
Ratchet, as a newly formed group, also wanted to acquire a resource-producing area like Venture Company, but the problem was that it lacked the strength. As a tycoon from Booty Bay and Steamwheedle Cartel, it couldn't compete with its superiors, and it was even less able to compete with Gallywix of the Bilgewater Cartel. But now the Horde had given it an opportunity.
The thought of several enormous open-air oil swamps made Gazlowe tremble with excitement. He rushed to Orgrimmar to discuss the details with Zul'ra and finally secured the mining rights. However, the condition was that he had to hand over 50% of the extracted oil, and the remaining 50% would be purchased by the Horde with priority from Lok. Any sale to other parties would require the Horde's approval.
Although the conditions were somewhat harsh—working hard and tiring jobs, handing over 50% of the oil for free, and needing the Horde's approval to sell the remaining 50%—the return of acquiring a resource-producing area and the Horde's strong support, and further expanding its power within the Steamwheedle Cartel, made the effort worthwhile.
In fact, Gazlowe received far more than just what was mentioned above. Although the Horde took 50% of the oil for free, Zul'ra could not find anyone else to take over the storage, refining, and other related businesses of that oil. These businesses naturally belonged to Ratchet.
If this deal goes well, Ratchet's status within the Steamwheedle Cartel will increase significantly, and its own wealth will also grow considerably. After all, having resources means having the power to regulate commodity prices. Even if he can't regulate them, simply satisfying Ratchet needs and no longer relying on external oil will be enough to save him a large sum of money.
Thanks to ☆☆ for the reward and for the support.