The Russian Oil Economy

‘This impressive intellectual endeavour tells you everything your wanted to know about the Russian oil industry but were afraid to ask. Even for those of us, who haven’t been afraid to ask, it has a wealth of information for anyone who wants to follow this interesting industry through the vagaries of its convoluted past.’ - Carol Dahl, Colorado School of Mines ‘A timely review of the sometime triumphs and repeated failures of Russian oil industry planning. As this comprehensive volume makes clear, the interaction between Russia and global oil markets has often been critical. Over the last century, Russia has played a leading role in oil economics, and as the authors demonstrate, Russia’s untamed power may yet bring turmoil to western oil companies and middle-eastern governments. Despite the spottiness of economic reforms in the 1990s and the incomplete privatization of the oil industry described by Considine and Kerr, the ascendancy of Putin is leading to another surge in Russian oil exports and OPEC’s effort to stabilize prices appears to hang in the balance. The Russian Oil Economy is one of the few studies that puts these events into perspective while offering insights into the outcome.’ - Adam Siemenski, Deutsche Bank Securities ‘In the old days we used to discuss international oil and energy in terms of WOCA, the World Outside the Communist Areas. This was because no-one knew what was happening within the USSR (or China). Now, Jennifer Considine and William Kerr have provided us with a book that tells us more than we could ever have imagined we would ever know about the Oil Economy of Russia. The final nail, it might be said, in the coffin of WOCA.’ - Ian Skeet, Oxford Energy Forum, Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, UK In this unique work, Jennifer Considine and William Kerr contend that while OPEC currently dominates the international oil market, Russia will be a key player in the future international energy market. Indeed, Russia’s petroleum resources rival those of Saudi Arabia. More than almost any other industry, future performance is often determined by the influence of decisions made in the past. This book provides a detailed history of the development of the Russian oil economy in order to build up a comprehensive and discerning picture of its future role and significance in the global energy market of the 21st century. The authors of this path-breaking treatment of the Russian oil economy present: • an assessment of the effects of the political and macroeconomic development of the Russian Federation and former Soviet Union on the resources, reserves and infrastructure of the current oil industry • an economic evaluation of the contemporary policies and institutions in the Russian Federation, including policy recommendations and forecasts • detailed statistics on all aspects of the Russian oil industry, including reserves, production, five-year planning targets, government policy, and tax rates, from 1860-2001. The Russian Oil Economy will be of enormous interest to a wide-ranging audience, including oil industry executives and analysts, investment bankers, energy consultants, energy policymakers, and those involved in the study, teaching and research of energy, Russian history and transition.