São Tomé

São Tomé, population 53,300 (in 2003), is the capital of São Tomé and Príncipe. The name is Portuguese for "Saint Thomas".

The city is a port on São Tomé Island, in the Gulf of Guinea. The chief exports are cocoa, coffee, copra, and palm products. There is also a fishing industry.

Large reserves of oil are in the ocean between Nigeria and São Tomé. The environmental remediation holding company was formed in 1997 to address the economic potential and then was transferred to the Chrome Energy Company, which is staffed by Nigerians and has offices in Texas. The Exxon company has also developed interest and the U.S. Navy is putting a port there. Drilling is to begin in 2004.