Slick: Australia's Toxic Relationship With Big Oil

by Royce Kurmelovs

SLICK: Australia’s toxic relationship with Big Oil takes a comprehensive look at the origins of the Australian petroleum industry, investigating what these companies knew about climate change and how they learned to wield influence and insert themselves into all facets of public life. Royce Kurmelovs reveals how the US petroleum industry was warned about its environmental impacts back in the 1950s and yet went on to build the Australian oil industry, which in turn tried to drill the Great Barrier Reef, sought to strongarm governments, and joined a global effort to bury the science of climate change and delay action despite knowing the harms it would cause.

SLICK also tells the stories of fire and flood survivors, as well as of the activists engaged in a high-stakes fight for the future of Australia and of the efforts being made to save ourselves from catastrophe.

This superb, in-depth work of journalism provides an on-the-ground examination of how the fossil fuel industry captured Australia, and outlines what’s at stake for the survival of the planet and our democracy.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, History

352 pages, Paperback

First published July 30, 2024

About the author

Royce Kurmelovs is an Australian freelance journalist and author. His books include The Death of Holden (2016), Rogue Nation (2017), Boom and Bust (2018) and Just Money (2020). His latest book, Slick, is due for release in 2014.

"One of Australia’s most important socio-political voices..." - Kill Your Darlings magazine

"...Prolific. Not to mention cutting." - The Advertiser

"...goes beyond trade-craft and runs to the core of Kurmelovs’s moral code: economic abstraction without considering the human implications is what produces a system that thrives on exploitation and hardship." - Australian Book Review

Reviews

[Abigail Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was excellent reporting but I found myself wanting more than that - I felt it needed a theory of change, and without it I wonder who the audience is?

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found out about the book talk for this book just 2 days prior to it happening and attended earlier this month (SEP). I was mightily impressed with the authors presence and knowledge of the material he presented, and despite thinking as I entered the room for the start that I cannot buy another book just now, I did. After a brief introduction, the book really kicks off with the personal stories of a few people who lost everything in the 2022 Lismore floods because of climate change. Then the book outlines the history of the oil and gas industry in Australia, when the first oil field was discovered just over 70 years ago in 1953, and it took a decade for it to get going with a massive infusion of financial assistance from US companies. At this point in the early 1960's the oil industry knew that the burning of fossil fuels and oil products in particular was already causing environmental problems and pushing the atmosphere towards increasing heat capture. At a conference in 1959 to celebrate 100 years of oil production, Edward Teller, the father of the Hydrogen bomb and a key architect of the Atom bomb during WWII, gave a speech where he warned those in attendance there were two problems they needed to keep in mind, one was that the oil will run out at some point, and two, there is grave danger in pumping all that carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as it will cause the Earth's temperatures to rise significantly causing the melting of the massive ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica. In the earl 1960's studies conducted by the oil industry under the auspices of the Stanford Researh Institute as well as by the US government. The most important prediction from the US report "is that carbon dioxide is being added to the earth's atmosphere by the burning of coal, oil and natural gas at such a rate by the year 2000 the heat balance will be so modified as possibly to cause marked changes in climate." Professor Harry Bloom of the University of Tasmania delivered a report to the government delivering "one of the clearest, most direct warnings about the risk posed by the greenhouse effect in Australia at that time." In a report of a United Nations committee attended by Exxon among other oil companies in mid 1984, and Exxon giving the message to the global oil industry that 'the greenhouse effect was actually real; CO2 was actually increasin in the atmosphere at a record rate' the climate would actually change; and the oil industry better prepare to defend itself." Exxon was doing their own research in the period mid 70's to mid-80's and when it was uncovered in 2023, the report in the magazine Science showed that Exxon's forecasts for the next 40 years of the effects of climate change due to the injection of CO2 mirrored current contemporary models. It was around this time of the mid 1980's that the industry started to look to public relations companies to sell their message of 'clean' energy from natural gas and oil and downplay the dangers of CO2. This book as a damning indictment of the fossil fuel industry especially in Australia and it's collusion with governments of both major parties and how they conspired to keep the dangers of burning fossil fuels from the general public. A must read.

[Nicholas D'Alonzo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book makes me angry! in a good way. Delving into the history of the Australian petroleum industry and its intertwining with our political system, Slick makes you sick of the blatant corruption. Kurmelovs dives into the archives to bring the history, but also anchors it in the conferences, negotiations, and people the present. I think the book is actually at its best when it's contemporary, bringing stories of people. Whether it's Kurmelovs' personal experiences at oil conferences, victims of climate-related disasters or climate protestors. Where it struggles is that there are just so many players in his grand play of how we got here, names, acronyms of ever-shifting petroleum lobby groups, and ministers in multiple different governments, that it is difficult to keep track of who is who. Kurmelovs also has a habit of putting a pin in one name, talking about someone else's history and personality before returning to the original person paragraphs later. I started feeling like I needed a diagram to keep track of the relationships. Perhaps this is not light before-bed reading. I don't think this was ever going to be an easy task to consolidate 100 years of petroleum and Australian government relations into an easily readable form. Kurmelovs does achieve his ultimate goal of showing that Australia's lack of action on climate change is not a mistake, it is the work of people, people who have put profit before the future, and that is why I am angry.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thoroughly researched and, frankly, scary expose of greed and power employed by the big oil companies, and the lack of action from Australian Governments over many years.

SLICK: Australia’s toxic relationship with Big Oil takes a comprehensive look at the origins of the Australian petroleum industry, investigating what these companies knew about climate change and how they learned to wield influence and insert themselves into all facets of public life. Royce Kurmelovs reveals how the US petroleum industry was warned about its environmental impacts back in the 1950s and yet went on to build the Australian oil industry, which in turn tried to drill the Great Barrier Reef, sought to strongarm governments, and joined a global effort to bury the science of climate change and delay action despite knowing the harms it would cause.
SLICK also tells the stories of fire and flood survivors, as well as of the activists engaged in a high-stakes fight for the future of Australia and of the efforts being made to save ourselves from catastrophe.
This superb, in-depth work of journalism provides an on-the-ground examination of how the fossil fuel industry captured Australia, and outlines what’s at stake for the survival of the planet and our democracy.

[Danica Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some good info in here, but it's on the whole too surface level for what I was looking for. Its liberal worldview holds it back from any kind of satisfying explanations and it never really connects Australia's fossil fuel industry to what's going on in capitalism or the world economy. It's probably too optimistic about the "inevitable" end of the fossil fuel industry. And in one chapter it doesn't do enough to differentiate between the bosses of the fossil fuel industry and its workers.

It also has a somewhat frustrating view on activism and protests. It rightly defends and goes over notable direct action things (Disrupt Burrup Hub, Violet CoCo) but says very little about any other type of protest, including the huge rallies around School Strike for Climate and the bushfires in 2019-20.

All that said, this book is fine. But if you want a proper Marxist analysis of the oil industry then read Adam Hanieh's Crude Capitalism instead.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

We all know that the Australian oil industry are all a pack of bastards who are destroying the planet and have too much power over Australian governments. What most of us didn't know (till reading this book) is exactly how single-mindedly and ruthlessly they have pursued their nefarious ends and for how long they have been doing it. They knew decades ago that they were killing the planet and have been actively suppressing this truth ever since. The first scientific paper warning of the dangers of global heating through burning oil and coal was published in 1896.

[Don Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly well written and researched book that pulls back the curtain to reveal how the situation our world faces now has come about, while exposing those most responsible. It’s an ugly truth that applies just as easily to many other countries on our planet as it does to Australia. The fossil fuel industry playbook is embedded in every country on Earth in some way or other. This book will open your eyes and hopefully your heart to what is happening and what you can do about it as climate change from fossil fuel use affects us more each passing day.

[Robert Watson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exposes the sad truth that our politicians are beholden to the oil and gas lobby. Surprise, surprise! Extensively researched and well argued.
Unfortunately, as with a lot of important non- fiction, it will be read by the converted and ignored by the rest.

[William Palmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting historical information including Edward Teller being involved with climate change in the 1950s and the fact that the oil companies were aware of climate change issues in the 1950s and 1960s.

[indi · Rating 4 out of 5]

rage inducing and very well written.

[Jenny Toune · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for anyone concerned about the health of the planet! Brilliantly researched and written.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

by Royce Kurmelovs


Finish date: 10.10.2025
Genre: Australian non-fiction
Rating: A
#NonFicNov25


Good News: Climate change is real. This book just opened up my eyes so I could see what the fossil fuel industry knew (1980s) and 40 year story of how the oil industry delayed action on climate change and concealed the evidence that the greenhouse effect was NOT A HOAX!

Good News: Royce Kurmelovs is one of Australia’s most important freelance journalists/authors. He is an excellent writer....the "hook" the first chapters were riveting!

Good News: By reading this book discovered the BBC Documentary ( parts 1-4 available on You Tube) Big Oil v The World. BBC Documentary. The story of what the fossil fuel industry knew about climate change more than four decades ago. So if you don't have time for this book....have a look at the documentary. I was shocked.

Personal: So sad to read that Exxon in 1984 told the oil industry that the greenhouse effect was actually real, the climate will actually change and the oil industry had better prepare to defend itself. (ch 7 "No Regrets"). The oil industry's main objective was NOT solve the problem of climate change...but just DEFEND itself! There as so much information in this book with the emphasis on Australia's role in delaying action on climate change. #EyeOpener

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Royce nails the influence of the oil and gas sector on public policy in Australia and how it has overstated its importance and led to poor outcomes in dealing with climate change. Slick highlights the effectiveness of the oil and gas sector through their PR campaigns are amplified in a largely compliant media. Politicians have fallen for the oil and gas industry spin, accepting that gas is part of the climate solution when in fact it is helping to cook the planet. A great read.