This book concisely describes the architecture of the oil and gas pipelines in the Black-Caspian Seas Region and analyzes the status quo and perspectives of oil and gas production in this region. The authors present numerous projects, each of which has made a substantial contribution to the development of pipeline transport and transit in this part of the world, and discuss them in detail. The topics covered include: the region’s geographic characteristics; the region’s hydrocarbon potential; Russian and EU policy on pipeline transport; Kazakhstan’s pipeline policy; Chinese pipeline projects; the Bulgarian gas transmission system; environmental risks in the production and transportation of hydrocarbons; satellite monitoring; and subsea leak detection. This volume offers a valuable resource for politicians, specialists in the oil and gas business, decision-makers, and environmentalists alike.
The Caspian Sea is a 700 mile-long body of water in central Asia, landlocked between Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan. While not a littoral state, nearby Uzbekistan is seen by some as being in the Caspian Sea region in view of its energy resources. It is estimated that the Caspian Sea region holds in reserves 16-33 billion barrels of oil and 236-337 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in reserve. This new book explores details related to energy exploration and the potentials of trade and production in this geo-politically significant region. The possible repercussions on OPEC are explored as well. Region: Potential Oil and Gas Supply to World Markets; Index.
The Black Sea region rarely hit the media headlines until the outbreak of war in Georgia in 2008, yet its importance as a focus of European Union (EU) external policy making had already been growing for several years. The area is fascinating and diverse, comprising both large and small states, with a mixture of democracies and more authoritarian regimes. Traditionally a central foreign policy concern for Russia and Turkey, since the end of the Cold War, the EU and the US have become increasingly involved in the many dimensions of Black Sea politics. This book brings together a broad range of specialists on the region to analyze the challenge of divergent agendas both within and outside the EU. More specifically it looks at how the EU's enlargement to include states on the Black Sea shore has brought about new external policies including the European Neighbourhood Policy, Black Sea Synergy and the Eastern Partnership, all representing subtly different aims and interests. The various sections in the book also examine regionalization, conflict resolution, security, relationships between the Black Sea's states and last but not least, the vital issue of energy which has begun to dominate the discussion of the region. Designed to further the debate on the future of EU policies for the Black Sea region, this book is an essential resource for researchers, students and others in search of a coherent picture of the inter-relationship of EU initiatives and policies in the region.
This book provides an analysis of the evolution of navigation and seaborne trade in the Black Sea, considering the geographic, geological, and hydro-meteorological data, including information from the historical, geopolitical, economic, social, and military frames. In ancient times the Black Sea was at the edge of the known world, and together with its coasts it preserves traces of the Greek, Roman, and Byzantine civilizations. Many of the ancient ports were important and essential towns, which remains the case in modern times. The complex geographical conditions that have historically influenced, and continue to influence the development of maritime trade and transport in the Black Sea, have not been thoroughly researched or optimized for these activities. The book is divided into ten chapters. Chapter I describes the physical – geographical conditions of the Black Sea’s basin, and the geological evolution of its recent history, with application to the hypothesis of Noah's flood. Chapter 2 presents a short history of the research conducted on the Black Sea upto present day. Chapter 3 summarizes the specific characteristics of the Black Sea’s morphohydrography and morphodynamics. Chapter 4 contains the conclusions regarding the influence of coastal relief on the navigation and seaborne trade on the Black Sea. Chapter 5 analyzes the Black Sea basin’s meteo-climatic regime. Chapter 6 contains the conclusions of the influence of weather and climate factors on the navigation and seaborne trade on the Black Sea. Chapter 7 describes the specific hydrological factors of the Black Sea. Chapter 8 contains the conclusions regarding the influence of the hydrological factors for the navigation and seaborne trade on the Black Sea. Chapter 9 presents the Black Sea’s specific hydrobiological elements specific, as a „unicum hydrobiologicum”, and the main features of the Black Sea’s ecology. Chapter 10 is concentrated on the historical, social, political, economic, and geopolitical framework of the Black Sea basin influencing navigation and maritime transportation, from ancient times to the present. The book is written from the perspective of a Romanian Navy officer, with more than 40 years’ experience in the Romanian Navy
This book aims at presenting a unified framework for the description of working principles, recent advances and applications of cutting-edge measurement technologies for the water sector. Instrumentation and measurement technologies are currently playing a key role in the monitoring, assessment and protection of environmental resources. Measurement techniques and sensing methods for the observation of water systems are rapidly evolving and are requiring an increased multi-disciplinary participation. The whole water sector is characterised by multiple technological contexts concerning the monitoring of the resource, given the broad coverage that includes water from its natural domains to the men-made infrastructures. In particular, instrumentation and measurement technologies have a pervasive presence in all the necessary aspects for the assessment, monitoring and control of the water resource and of its relationship with the various environmental stressors, including the anthropic pressures. Therefore, the book aims at presenting how the diagnostics/monitoring methodologies and the related technologies can give an answer to the issues raised by the complex scenario characterising the water cycle management (WCM). The book is structured in five topical sections, grouped by similarity of their technological and/or applicative contexts.
The ring of countries bordering the Black Sea make up one of the unstable subregions of former Soviet republics, satellites and neighbours. This volume analyses the security issues in the Black Sea region and the development of mechanisms that would promote cooperation and conflict management.
"The Caspian Sea and the lands around it are emerging again as a focus region in global affairs. With security of energy supply high on the international agenda, and with fears of resource shortages re-surfacing, the countries of the Caspian region are stepping onto the global stage, claiming for themselves new roles as providers of resources to the world. However, the new-found strength and self-confidence of the rulers of these countries are built on uncertain ground. How will a temporary - or longer-term - global recession affect these recently independent countries? How will climate change influence them - and will global climate policy alter the value of their massive hydrocarbon reserves? In some of these countries, there have been domestic armed conflicts or conflicts with neighbouring states - could hostilities erupt again? And what about the major powers in the neighbourhood? Who will gain influence, and who will lose - or will geopolitical games simply serve to destabilize matters? In three scenarios for the Caspian Sea region in 2025 this book tries to suggest possible futures for the countries around the Caspian Sea. The futures are shaped in a complex interplay with global events, with other powers and with a range of forces within the region itself. The main forces shaping the region will be the market for natural resources and their impact on regional economies, political and cultural forces of change within the region and each of the countries, as well as the dominance and influence of great powers."--Publisher.
