Marmalade Islands

The Marmalade Islands are the islands which consist of a geographical area called the Black Island Chain and the Oil Archipelago, both are oil rich. The Marmalade Islands consist of the whole Black Island Chain, and three islands in the Oil Archipelago. It is currently under the jurisdiction of Shops Island. The Marmalade Islands are also where the Trans-Antarctic Pipeline starts and ends.

History
The Marmalade Islands were uninhabited for a long time, but in the early 1000's, Sleetish vikings landed in the islands and made their presence known, but only for a short amount of time before disappearing again. In the 1700's, the Puffish colonized the archipelago, later eventually abandoning it as well. The territory was unclaimed for a long time, until in 2013 when Snowiny colonized it. The Snowinians were the first to find oil in the archipelago, which made the Marmalade Islands a valuable possession for them. In 2014, when Snowiny racked up a hefty debt to Shops Island, the Marmalade Islands were transferred to Shopper ownership to pay off the debts. Nowadays, the Marmalade Islands are a main source of Shops Island's oil, along with the Shopper East Ocean Territory.

Economy


The Marmalade Islands' main economic source is, obviously, mass oil production. The Oil Archipelago has some of the highest oil and natural gas reserves in Antarctica. The Marmalade Islands are Shops' main source of oil, although the Shoppers export much of it to other countries. The Marmalade Islands are also an important Shopper trade hub - it is halfway through the Culldrome Isles and Ed Island, and is also a gateway to the Yowien Sea.

Competition
The Marmalade Islands are a highly contested area for many Antarctic countries, due to the high concentration of oil. The main form of competition is from the other 7 islands in the Oil Archipelago under Margatian ownership, although there are currently talks on creating an agreement in order to reduce competition. Many countries have built oil rigs off the islands in international waters to cash in on the reserves. However, oil in the areas outside of the islands is much lower grade and less plentiful.

Trivia

 * Despite no Alemanian influence, there are many penguins from Alemania living in the Marmalade Islands.
 * Shops often tests secret and high-grade weapons off the coasts of the Marmalade Islands.