Ludvig Nobel

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Image:Nobel Ludvig.gif Ludvig Nobel (1831-1888) was Alfred Nobel's second oldest brother. With his brother Robert, he operated Branobel, an oil company in Baku.

He was living in St. Petersburg and running his father's factory when he asked Robert to explore southern Russia for wood to make gun stocks for the tsar. Robert found oil instead, and they set up their company in 1876. Ludvig invented better refineries, pipelines, and tankers, and at one point Baku was producing 50% of the world's oil and he was its "oil king". Ludvig and Robert created a large park (which is still extant) in the "Black City" section of Baku, near their home, Villa Petrolea.

After his death, Ludvig's son Emanuel Nobel took over the running of Branobel.

About 12 percent of the money Alfred left for the Nobel Prizes came from his shares in Branobel. He was the company's biggest individual shareholder.