Edwin L. Drake constructed the first successful drill well. This action launched the modern petroleum industry in the United States. The world's first oil refinery was built in 1856 in Ploesti, Romania. Many more were built around this and invested by the United States. This was until WWI when Nazi Germany took control of them.-Currently the largest oil refinery is in Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia.- The actual industry is old and its technique and has not drastically changed in about 50 years. The reasoning for this, especially with United States refineries, most of the capital gained goes toward making it more keep environmental requirements. Even though this is a type of advancement, more efficient types of products are not being researched, which could be keeping refinery from reaching their potentials. An example of this would be a more efficient way to produce fractions through the fractional distillation process. Although many processes are similar, each refinery has their own unique formula for completing these products. This formula is determined by cost amounts, availability of equipment, type of crude oil, demand, and many other factors. Crude oil is also becoming more scarce. No refineries have been built sine 1976, and only one EPA permit has been filed, by Arizona Clean Fuels, to build one. This is due to the large amount of regulations and laws imposed on building a refinery and the large amount of people opposed to the construction of refineries.