Saudi Arabia has been instrumental in the collapse of the crude oil prices by refusing to cut production and also prevailing on OPEC not to do so. This has so far inflicted incalculable damage on the global economy. Saudi Arabia has taken a huge gamble by flooding the global oil market with...

With tremendous crude oil reserves rivaling, if not exceeding, those of Saudi Arabia, lowest production costs in the world and the biggest potential for capacity expansion of anywhere else, Iraq may be destined to dominate the world oil market in the second and third decades of the 21st century...

With the global economy heading towards a severe oil crunch probably by 2015 or thereabouts, an analysis of Saudi oil fundamentals is causing the world disquiet and worry bordering on panic. Oil-importing nations have long treated Saudi Arabia as an infinitely deep well of crude oil supplies....

I maximize present valued world GDP over the stockpile of petroleum used to contain price shocks administered by OPEC. Long run price elasticity of demand and non-OPEC supply exceed those in the short run, so OPEC profits from sudden, as opposed to gradual, increases in price. These shocks...

The question is examined whether OPEC is in a position to collect a risk premium to effectively insure others against a macroeconomic downturn, which may, in turn, result from a rise in the price of crude oil. Contingent exchange is modeled such that parties whose consumption is elastic with...

Does OPEC still matter? How do OPEC and non-OPEC oil production, global oil demand, and the role of oil as a financial asset influence oil prices? What is the mechanism through which China affects oil prices? These questions reveal the need for a better understanding of oil market dynamics. Our...

This paper estimates a dynamic model of the world oil market and tests whether OPEC countries colluded and whether non-OPEC countries behaved oligopolistically over the period 1970-2004. Results of the analysis by decade support OPEC countries colluding as the dominant cartel producer and...

Oil price cycles can be relatively long, but the time needed for research, development, and widespread adoption of important oilfield technologies can be even longer. Econometric analysis shows that U.S. upstream research and development efforts track oil price movements with a delay, but that...

Asset Retirement Obligation (ARO) is becoming the focus of many oil and gas companies around the world. It is a critical aspect of the Exploration and Production business which has suffered professional neglect for too long. As a subject matter, the principles of ARO owe credence to both...

For a country with supposedly the third largest proven crude oil reserves in the world and the fifth largest oil exporter, the prospect of ceasing to be a major oil exporter by 2015 might seem like a nightmare scenario. Yet, already Iran is looking at the future of its oil industry with mounting...