Ownership and Control of Oil: Explaining Policy Choices across Producing Countries

219 Pages·2014·1.48 MB·English

by  Bianca Sarbu

Ownership and Control of Oil
Ownership and Control of Oil examines government decisions about how
much control to exert over the petroleum industry, focusing on the
role of National Oil Companies in the production of crude oil since the
nationalizations in the 1970s.
• What are the motives for which some producing states opt for less and
not more control of their oil production sector?
• When can International Oil Companies enter the upstream industry of
producing states and under what conditions?
The diversity of policy choices across producers provides the stage for
this investigation: different theoretical explanations are confronted with
empirical evidence, with the aim of fi nally proposing an interdisciplinary
framework of analysis to explain who controls oil production around the
world.
This book is intended for both specialists and general readers who have
an interest in the issue of government control of the petroleum industry. Due
to its multidisciplinary approach, the book is aimed at a large academic
public composed of scholars of political science, international political
economy, comparative politics, and Middle East area studies. Moreover,
this book should be relevant to international consultants, industry
professionals and decision-makers in countries assessing their experience
with existing control structures as well as the many countries in the process
of joining the “petroleum club” of oil producing nations.
Bianca Sarbu is a post-doctoral researcher at the Center for Security Studies,
ETH Zurich. Her research spans the fi eld of Energy Studies with a particu-
lar focus on the oil industry, political risks, National Oil Companies
and International Oil Companies, as well as the political economy of oil
producing countries. For the 2011/2012 academic year, Bianca was a
Fulbright Visiting Scholar at the Elliott School of International Affairs,
George Washington University, Washington DC, USA.
This page intentionally left blank
Ownership and Control
of Oil
Explaining policy choices across
producing countries
Bianca Sarbu
ROUTLEDGE TRayloor u& Ftlraencdis gGreoup
LONDON AND NEW YORK
First edition published 2014
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2014 Bianca Sarbu
The right of Bianca Sarbu to be identifi ed as author of this work has been
asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in
any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identifi cation and explanation
without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Sarbu, Bianca.
Ownership and control of oil : explaining policy choices across
producing countries / Bianca Sarbu.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-415-72599-6 (hb : alk. paper)—ISBN 978-1-315-77809-9
(ebook : alk. paper) 1. Petroleum industry and trade—Government
policy. 2. Petroleum industry and trade—Political aspects. I. Title.
HD9560.6.S37 2014
338.2'7282—dc23 2013042670
ISBN: 978-0-415-72599-6 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-77809-9 (ebk)
Typeset in Sabon
by Refi neCatch Limited, Bungay, Suffolk
To my parents and my Manuel
This page intentionally left blank
1. The right of peoples and nations to permanent sovereignty over their
natural wealth and resources must be exercised in the interest of their
national development and of the well-being of the people of the State
concerned.
2. The exploration, development and disposition of such resources, as well
as the import of the foreign capital required for these purposes, should be
in conformity with the rules and conditions which the peoples and nations
freely consider to be necessary or desirable with regard to the
authorization, restriction or prohibition of such activities.
(United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1803 (XVII)
of December 14 1962,
“Permanent Sovereignty over Natural Resources”)
Oil is the most glaring exception to the rules of trade and investment
underpinning globalization. (. . .) Barriers to investment are preserved and
protected as governments freely discriminate against foreign investment or
totally ban it, providing their companies unfettered, uncompetitive monopo-
lies in the exploration, production and sale of oil.
(Edward Morse, SAISPHERE 2005)
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
List of fi gures and tables x
Preface and acknowledgements xii
1 Rethinking the ownership and control of oil 1
2 Upstream sector policy in the oil industry 22
3 C urrent readings of Energy Studies
and theory development 50
4 A statistical analysis of oil upstream
sector policies across the world 82
5 Mirroring the cases of Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi 108
6 Conclusions 154
Annex 164
Index 195