Energy shift: decline of easy oil and restructuring of geo-politics

doi:10.1007/s11708-016-0416-8

Front. Energy

2016, Vol. 10

Issue (3) : 260-267 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11708-016-0416-8

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Energy shift: decline of easy oil and restructuring of geo-politics

Oliver R. INDERWILDI(

), David A. KING

Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3QY, United Kingdom

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Abstract

This paper critically assesses the geopolitical and geo-economic impact of novel fuel resources on both resource exporters and importers. Presently, very strong political and economic forces drive the utilisation of domestic, unconventional oil and gas recovery in the West as these enhance energy security and ease balance of payment issues. The additional capacity generated by this trend has, supported by other effects such as Saudi Arabia’s decision to maintain current production, triggered a significant reduction of oil prices. Consequently, it is now oil exporters that struggle with the balance of payment issues and often these countries base their fiscal budget completely on fossil fuel revenues. In fact, these unconventional resources help turn the tide while oil exporters are now politically significantly weakened due to the increased energy sufficiency of the West. The catch is that the extraction of unconventional types of oil has many environmental implications. So, internalising the environmental externalities have to be considered. This paper, therefore, assesses, next to geopolitics and geo-economics, the environmental implications of this trend.

Keywords energy security climatic change geo-economics geopolitics unconventional resources macroeconomics

Corresponding Author(s): Oliver R. INDERWILDI

Just Accepted Date: 01 June 2016 Online First Date: 26 July 2016 Issue Date: 07 September 2016

Cite this article:

Oliver R. INDERWILDI,David A. KING. Energy shift: decline of easy oil and restructuring of geo-politics[J]. Front. Energy, 2016, 10(3): 260-267.

URL:

https://academic.hep.com.cn/fie/EN/10.1007/s11708-016-0416-8
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fie/EN/Y2016/V10/I3/260

Fig.1 Flux in and out of World Oil Inventory (1900–2015)

Fig.2 Crude oil production as a function of Brent crude oil price, 1998–2013 [7]

Fig.3 Fall in Brent crude oil prices over the year 2014

Fig.4 Projected world liquid fuels demand and supply [5]

Fig.5 Emission intensity of diesel fuel derived from different feedstock, in [g(CO_{2 eq.})/MJ]

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