Abstract
Oil markets, technologies, and policies constantly evolve at different times and places. Also, processes surrounding oil, the energy transitions and inter-fuel competition are related to the nature of the interaction between monopolies, states and the free-market and that these are not linked in a linear fashion to the structural issues of reserve distribution or supply and demand levels. The next chapter will analyze these complex evolutionary processes surrounding the indispensable oil and will touch upon international dynamics in the world energy mix.
The views expressed here are personal and do not necessarily reflect these of the institutions in which the Author has been employed. If some statements might appear astonishing, the reader may deepen the subject by reading the last book of the Author “The changing world of energy and the geopolitical challenges” two volumes demonstrating the assertions made by the large majority being brought about technology radical changes.
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Notes
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42 US gallons.
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The author did its Ph.D. thesis in this topic and was in charge of this sector at the European Commission and he can testify of the technological potential but also of the economic disappointments.
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Member countries can decide to store oil outside of their national boundaries and include such stocks for meeting their minimum requirement. In general, IEA member countries use three approaches to meet their oil inventory obligations: industry stocks, government stocks, and agency stocks. Most countries use a combination of these.
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Acting Secretary General of OPEC from 1983 to 1988.
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Bahrain is an exception. Although oil was discovered in the Gulf Countries for the first time in 1932 in this country the oil reserves and production of this small insular country were very small. Things changed in April 2018 when the country announced the discovery of a shale oil reservoir of 80 billion barrels (approximately 10% of Saudi Arabia’s reserves). However, it is too early to speculate on its economic potential. Exploration drillings will be required for evaluating the economic reserves. This might be the start of shale oil adventures in the Middle East, a region presenting the advantages of a good geology, existing petroleum infrastructures, and few environmental or community oppositions.
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A geological term used in oil and gas industry referring to a particular stratigraphic or structural geologic setting.
- 7.
The author is very skeptical about the electric vehicle rapid development. Electric cars per se are not at all a problem—not even the lithium to produce the batteries. The real challenge is the lack of installed capacity of power plant; not the quantity of electricity (MWh) to be used but the power (MW). The author estimates that replacing 10% of the existing car fleet in any Member State of the European Union will require in case of speed charge more than doubling the existing power plant installed capacity. This is clearly very unlikely, let aside in the developing countries.
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MENA: Middle East and North Africa.
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A theory developed by Hotelling (1931).
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Furfari, S. (2020). Oil, Between Monopolies and Free Market. In: Belyi, A. (eds) Beyond Market Assumptions: Oil Price as a Global Institution. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29089-4_3
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