<P> Saudi Arabian oil was first discovered by the Americans in commercial quantities at Dammam oil well No. 7 in 1938 in what is now modern day Dhahran . </P> <P> On January 15, 1902, Ibn Saud took Riyadh from the Rashid tribe . In 1913, his forces captured the province of al - Hasa from the Ottoman Turks . In 1922, he completed his conquest of the Nejd, and in 1925, he conquered the Hijaz . In 1932, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was proclaimed with Ibn Saud as king . Without stability in the region, the search for oil would have been difficult, as evidenced by early oil exploration in neighbouring countries such as Yemen and Oman . </P>

Where was oil first discovered in middle east