Atlantic Richfield Company is an oil company with operations in the United States as well as in Indonesia, the North Sea, and the South China Sea. It has more than 1,300 gas stations in the western part of the United States. ARCO was originally formed by the merger of East Coast-based Atlantic Refining and California-based Richfield Oil Corporation in 1966. A subsequent merger in 1969 brought in Sinclair Oil Corporation. It became a subsidiary of UK-based BP in 2000 through its BP West Coast Products LLC affiliate. ARCO is known for its low-priced gasoline compared to other national brands,... mainly due to an early 1980s decision to emphasize cost cutting and alternative sources of income . ARCO is headquartered in La Palma, California. The Atlantic Petroleum Storage Company's heritage dates back to 1866. It became part of the Standard Oil trust in 1874, but achieved independence again when Standard Oil was broken up in 1911. In 1915, Atlantic opens its first gas station on Baum Boulevard in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1917, First Richfield Oil Company of California gas station at Slauson and Central Avenues in Los Angeles, California.
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