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.
Caspian Energy Politics analyses the role of oil and gas in the development of the three main petroleum exporters in the Caspian region - Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan - and how energy resources influence interactions with semi-authoritarian Russia and China. Due to volatile commodity prices and competition for the resources in and around the Caspian Sea, the governments of these petroleum-exporters face a series of difficult decisions. These governments have sought to balance short-term incentives to spend oil revenues as a means to maintain power against the need for a long-term strategy for managing these assets, choices which have further implications for how these countries align themselves internationally. By illuminating important linkages between domestic and international dynamics in these states, the book provides a fresh perspective on energy politics and the impact of petroleum on the development of the Caspian petroleum producers. Expert contributors from Central Asia and the South Caucasus and international scholars provide context-specific insights into the incentives affecting decision-makers that can provide a foundation for strategies to help the countries in the region overcome the negative effects of reliance on oil and gas. As such, the book will be a valuable tool for business actors seeking to understand the role of Chinese and Russian companies in the region, as well as local and international policymakers and non-governmental organisations.
This book analyzes the legal and economic situation concerning the removal and allocation of the natural resources in the Caspian Sea – the largest enclosed body of salt water in the world, which not only constitutes a fragile ecosystem with great fishery resources, but is also rich in oil and gas deposits. The economic advantages gained from the development of oil and gas are the basis for the economic and social development of the riparian states, but also cause significant transboundary harm to the ecosystem of the Caspian Sea. The book contends that, if the local environment grows more heavily contaminated through the extraction of mineral resources, it could lead to environmentally induced violence. It describes the ongoing conflicts, which are primarily due to various riparian states’ territorial claims concerning the extraction of oil and gas resources, and argues that the current legal framework on the use and protection of the Caspian Sea is obsolete. Thus, the main objective of the book is to point out corresponding international legal mechanisms that could be used in order to settle these disputes and protect the Caspian Sea’s fragile environment from transboundary harm.
Reflecting the particular concerns of each of the Caspian countries, this book offers a unique perspective on the prospects and priorities for long-term development round the Caspian basin.
This book presents a critical review of the status of energy security in Asia and suggests how a country or a region collectively can achieve energy security in two broad aspects. First, it analyzes how regional cooperation and energy trade can enhance energy security in the region. Second, it reviews how energy security can be ensured in national and regional general contexts. From the reviews and analyses, this book asserts that diversification and integration are key to ensuring energy security. It presents policy implications for enhancing energy security, especially in resource-rich as well as resource-poor developing countries in Asia.
The opening of the Caspian Sea basin to Western investment following the breakup of the Soviet Union produced a major contest for access to the region's vast energy reserves on the part of powers as close as Russia, Turkey, and Iran, and as far away as Japan and the United States. Indeed, the struggle to exploit Caspian oil has been one of the most monumental geopolitical developments of the post-Cold War era as external powers vie for political, economic, and military influence in a region brimming not only with oil, but also with ethnic conflicts and historical animosities. The coming decade of rapidly increasing demand for energy will ensure the continued interest and engagement of external powers with often competing geopolitical agendas. Thus the geopolitical developments spawned by the opening of the Caspian Sea are likely to continue to far outweigh the actual impact of Caspian oil on world energy markets. This collection of essays by prominent scholars and international experts offers several important and often conflicting interpretations of the events unfolding along the shores of the world's oldest oil-producing region.
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 maritime domain and sustainable energy are two critical aspects of the twenty first century which will shape the future of humanity. Although the maritime domain is inextricably interlinked with Sustainable Energy Security (SES), many aspects are discussed in isolated silos. This book aims to fill in this gap by presenting a holistic view of the maritime dimension of SES. It includes various topics such as the global energy system, energy supply chains, energy trade, shipping of energy commodities, energy markets, protection of maritime energy supply lines and the role of military in providing maritime security. It also focuses on harnessing offshore energy resources, both hydrocarbons and marine renewable energy and discusses the developments in lowering emissions from the shipping sector. The book is written for the general reader as well as students who are undergoing a course in energy systems, maritime management, naval studies and energy sustainability. The content is tailored to meet the intellectual curiosity of the inquisitive reader and introduces various specialized topics which are dealt in a simple and concise manner. It is hoped that this book would bridge the gap in the understanding of the maritime dimension of SES.