Ludvig Nobel

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Ludvig Nobel

Ludvig Nobel (1831-1888) was Alfred Nobel's second oldest brother. With his brother Robert, he operated Branobel, an oil company in Baku.

He was living in St. Petersburg and running his father's factory when he asked Robert to explore southern Russia for wood to make gun stocks for the tsar. Robert found oil instead, and they set up their company in 1876. Ludvig invented better refineries, pipelines, and tankers, and at one point Baku was producing 50% of the world's oil and he was its "oil king".

Before 1880 the United States had been the teacher of Russia regarding most areas in the oil-business. However, the roles were reversed with reference to transportation of oil as of the moment Ludvig Nobel introduced tankers and trains with cisterns. The first tank steamer of the United States was built after drawings and calculations of Ludvig Nobel after his death.

The oilbusiness in these days lacked the know-how and scientific base and to rectify this Ludvig Nobel established both in Baku and S:t Petersburg technical-chemical research labs. These centers were very active and as soon as something of commercial interest was found, Ludvig Nobel was fast in trying the new products out on a large scale.

Ludvig Nobel was not a businessman hunting profits but rather an enthusiast, full of ideas and visions. His humanity and social approach was unique for the time. In 1885 he started a cooperative bank, sparkasse, for the workers. In Baku social areas were bult for the workers like dining rooms, biljard room, library and conference rooms where speeches and discussions were held. At Villa Petrolea several houses for the workers were built and a shuttle boat was offered between the city and the harbour. The company also donated fonds to schools and ran a hospital.

Ludvig and Robert created a large park (which is still existent) in the "Black City" section of Baku, near their home, Villa Petrolea.

After his death, Ludvig's son Emanuel Nobel took over the running of Branobel.

About 12 percent of the money Alfred left for the Nobel Prizes came from his shares in Branobel. He was the company's biggest individual shareholder.