MovieChat Forums > The Formula (1980) Discussion > Formula no secret

Formula no secret

posted 18 years ago by SeldonRL
7 replies | jump to latest

I saw an article in Parade(?) magazine a few monthes ago. South Africa(apartheid) was making fuel out of coal for years. The only reason they have stopped it that it is cheaper to import oil.

[–] shooter_im469 17 years ago

I actually remember listening to a Paul Harvey radio spot ~5-7 years ago, where Harvey told of a synthetic gasoline plant that was shut down by the .gov during the 40's or 50's.

It was one of those "And now you know the rest of the story" segments. But I've spoken with several people in the petroleum engineering field (in academia) and they said they'd never heard of it.

Probably just more Paul Harvey bluster, but I was reminded of it when I saw this movie on here....

[–] jacowium 17 years ago

Thanks for the info. But just a question: what on earth does apartheid have to do with the manufacturing of fuel out of coal?

[–] flan99 16 years ago

The film itself even makes it clear that synthetic oil is far fron new.

The Germans actually did make it in WW II.

The FORMULA is for a CATALYST to make the process easier and much cheaper.

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] superstitions 16 years ago

"Thanks for the info. But just a question: what on earth does apartheid have to do with the manufacturing of fuel out of coal?"

South Africa was being boycotted by most western nations during the apartheid era. That included restrictions on oil imports. Hence they were making gas from coal.

Doug

[–] jacowium 16 years ago

I understand now, thank you!

[–] poupartca 11 years ago

Getting oil from coal is not radical in itself, but it's incredibly expensive and only becomes viable, as it stands now, if oil is at peak prices. The trick in this movie is the Macguffin that it can be done cheaply, without bankrupting the company.