| New Consolidated Gold Fields Ltd. Estonian Branch | |
| Type: | Private limited company |
| Industry: | Oil and gas |
| Fate: | Nationalized |
| Foundation: | 1930 |
| Defunct: | 1940 |
| Location City: | Kohtla-Nõmme |
| Location Country: | Estonia |
| Key People: | William Dunn (Chairman) |
| Products: | Shale oil |
| Production: | 11,400 tonnes of shale oil (1939) |
| Parent: | Consolidated Gold Fields |
| Subsid: | Trustivapaa Bensiini |
New Consolidated Gold Fields Ltd Estonian Branch (commonly known as Goldfields) was an oil shale company located in Kohtla-Nõmme, Estonia. It was a subsidiary of Consolidated Gold Fields.
New Consolidated Gold Fields began oil shale research and development in the late 1920s in England.[1] In 1930 it began construction of the shale oil extraction complex at Kohtla-Nõmme. It consisted of a shale oil extraction plant, a crushing mill, laboratory, power plant, office building and services facilities, as also housing for 30 workers, dispensary and sauna.[2] The first plant was built in 1931. The plant was equipped with eight rotating retorts (Davidson retorts).[3] Each of these retorts was capable of processing 15 tonnes of oil shale per day.[3] This facility continued to operate until 1961.[4] In 1934 the company doubled its production by building the second shale oil extraction plant.[5]
In 1934, Eesti Kiviõli and New Consolidated Gold Fields established the service station chain Trustivapaa Bensiini (now: Teboil) in Finland. During 1940 this chain sold more shale-oil-derived gasoline than did the entire conventional gasoline market in Estonia.[6] In 1937, the company opened the Kohtla underground mine.[4]
After the occupation of Estonia by the Soviet Union, the company was nationalized in 1940. The Kohtla-Nõmme shale oil extraction complex continued to operate until 1961.[4] The underground mine stayed operational until 2001.[7]