Balint asked a great question Monday. He asked me if I truly believed that oil "the root of all evil"--then what did I think about petroleum products that we use every day--including this laptop that I'm typing on right now.
So I'd like to add to my response that so long as oil is needed to fuel our vehicles, power our homes, fly our planes, and power our government it will cause blood to spill and the environment to suffer. But IF we find an alternative source for power, a renewable source for power--THEN oil will be a simple commodity. Oil as a commodity is not nearly as "evil" a symbol for power.
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
History of Major players in Oil Industry
i. 1870 Standard Oil owned by American Rockefeller family—biggest competitor on oil market, produced oil from United States
1. Suppressed competitors through bribery and underselling…tactics still seen in OPEC today.
2. In 1911 the US court ruled to break Standard oil into over 30 companies because of Rockefeller’s illegal tactics—some of which are: Exxon, Mobile, Chevron, and Amoco.
ii. 1873 Nobel brothers– First Russian family to produce Baku oil
iii. 1883 Caspian and Black Sea Petroleum Company (BNITO) owned by French Rothschild family—becomes 2nd largest exporter of Russian petroleum.
iv. 1890 Royal Dutch Company found oil in Indonesia (East Sumatra).
v. 1897 Englishman, Marcus Samuel (designer of first oil tanker 1n 1892), named his oil company—Shell Transport and Trading Company.
vi. 1907 Royal Dutch and Shell merge (60:40 in favor of RD), yet maintain independent status of each other. Not until 2005 do the companies officially become one single company (Royal Dutch-Shell).
vii. 1912 TPC (Turkish Petroleum Company) is created under BP administration for the sole purpose of gaining access to Mesopotamia’s oil (soon to be Iraq).
viii. 1913 Converting the royal navy to oil meant that Britain needed to secure foreign oil, thus the government obtained control of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (AKA BP). Based out of Persia (now Iran) since 1901.
ix. 1948 ARAMCO (Arabian American Oil company) is formed in a partnership including Mobile, Chevron, Texaco, and Exxon. They later discover that they have control of the largest oil reserve in the world (To BP’s dismay).
1. Suppressed competitors through bribery and underselling…tactics still seen in OPEC today.
2. In 1911 the US court ruled to break Standard oil into over 30 companies because of Rockefeller’s illegal tactics—some of which are: Exxon, Mobile, Chevron, and Amoco.
ii. 1873 Nobel brothers– First Russian family to produce Baku oil
iii. 1883 Caspian and Black Sea Petroleum Company (BNITO) owned by French Rothschild family—becomes 2nd largest exporter of Russian petroleum.
iv. 1890 Royal Dutch Company found oil in Indonesia (East Sumatra).
v. 1897 Englishman, Marcus Samuel (designer of first oil tanker 1n 1892), named his oil company—Shell Transport and Trading Company.
vi. 1907 Royal Dutch and Shell merge (60:40 in favor of RD), yet maintain independent status of each other. Not until 2005 do the companies officially become one single company (Royal Dutch-Shell).
vii. 1912 TPC (Turkish Petroleum Company) is created under BP administration for the sole purpose of gaining access to Mesopotamia’s oil (soon to be Iraq).
viii. 1913 Converting the royal navy to oil meant that Britain needed to secure foreign oil, thus the government obtained control of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (AKA BP). Based out of Persia (now Iran) since 1901.
ix. 1948 ARAMCO (Arabian American Oil company) is formed in a partnership including Mobile, Chevron, Texaco, and Exxon. They later discover that they have control of the largest oil reserve in the world (To BP’s dismay).
Outline from Presentation: Formatting didn't quite translate from word (sorry)
a. A brief history:
i. 347 A.D. Oil wells are drilled in China up to 800 feet deep using bits attached to bamboo poles.
ii. 1264 Mining of seep oil in medieval Persia witnessed by Marco Polo on his travels through Baku.
iii. 1500s Seep oil collected in the Carpathian Mountains of Poland is used to light street lamps.
iv. 1594 Oil wells are hand dug at Baku, Persia up to 35 meters (115 feet) deep.
v. 1735 Oil sands are mined and the oil extracted in Alsace, France.
vi. 1815 Oil is produced in United States as an undesirable by-product from brine wells in Pennsylvania.
vii. 1848 First modern oil well drilled in Asia, northeast of Baku, by Russian engineer F.N. Semyenov. **Some claim that Colonel Drake built the first modern oil well in Pennsylvania—but that is actually the first well in the US
viii. 1849 Distillation of kerosene from oil by Canadian geologist Dr. Abraham Gesner. Kerosene eventually replaces whale oil as the illuminant of choice and creates a new market for crude oil. **Did this save the whales?
ix. 1878 Electric light bulb invented by Thomas Edison eliminates demand for kerosene, and the oil industry enters a recession.
x. 1883 French Rothschild’s financed a railroad to transport Baku kerosene to the Black Sea Port, Batum, in Georgia
xi. 1885 Oil burners on steam engines in the California oil fields, and later on steam locomotives, create new crude oil markets.
xii. 1886 Gasoline-powered automobiles are introduced in Europe. Before this gasoline was simply a cheap solvent produced as a byproduct of kerosene distillation.
xiii. 1892 first oil tanker sailed from Batum (the Black Sea Port) created by the English Samuel Family (later created Shell)
xiv. 1899 between 1880-1899 most Arab sheikdoms agreed not to allow any foreigners (excluding Britain) without Britain’s express permission. This lasted until the 1970’s
xv. 1910 boom in car sales helped gasoline surpass kerosene sales.
xvi. 1913 Winston Churchill obtains his goal—convincing the British government to convert navy from coal to oil power. This helped to make oil a matter of national security rather than a mere commodity.
xvii. 1915-1916 The UK made a pact with the Emir of Hejaz, Hussein, that Britain would back an uprising in Mesopotamia (now Iraq) in return for dominance over the oil.
xviii. 1918 Churchill wins the Parliament with 254/272 votes to have the government purchase 51% of BP, essentially creating a gov owned country with a private “heart”. This enabled the gov to appoint the majority of the board members and have ultimate control of the company’s actions. This changed the perspective of oil in relation to nations, and above all—strategic national alliances.
xix. 1920 Hussein’s revolt finally begins, but—to the UK’s surprise—Hussein revolts also against Britain’s intention to rule his new kingdom secretively.
xx. 1921 Britain bribes local tribes to accept Faisal Hussein as king of Iraq (formerly Kirkuk, Baghdad, and Bashra).
xxi. 1925 Britain finally achieves an official alliance with Hussein and before the pseudo assembly is formed the British Oil company TPC achieved a secure oil concession with Iraq (not officially named until 1929). Essentially—Iraq was created by Britain in the interest of national security to gain control of Mesopotamian oil.
xxii. 1938 US companies, Texaco and Chevron, begin producing commercial quantities of oil out of Saudi Arabia.
xxiii. 1943 President Roosevelt authorized the Lend-Lease Act with Saudi Arabia because such oil reserves were proving to be important to US national security (due to depletion of US sources).
xxiv. 1949 Oily Rocks (AKA Neft Dashlari) Azerbainjan, a man made island on the Caspian Sea, pioneered the first offshore oil rigs in the world.
1. 125 miles of roads link the oil rigs in the Caspian Sea
2. 600 total oil rigs (approximately 400 operable)
3. Oilrigs are now decrepit, some literally falling into the sea (as are some of the roads). Yet many are still in operation despite age.
xxv. 1951 Iran, angered that BP did not increase standards of living for Iranian employees (as agreed) and angered that they got less than 50% of profits began strategies to force BP to do this.
xxvi. 1953 US CIA creates a coup that removes Mossadegh eventually gaining control of 60% of Iranian oil (again to BP’s dismay—had BP simply agreed to Iranians initial requests they would have had a much better cut of the profits).
xxvii. 1952 Gamal Abdel Nasser headed a coup and won control of Egypt. He then (quietly for a couple of years) began to press all Arab leaders, and civilians, to take control of oil prices, demanding higher profit shares and higher prices per barrel.
xxviii. 1953Discovery of the “Seven Sisters” the 7 major oil companies who controlled 82% of world crude reserves, 80% of world production, and 76% of refineries. And they illegally conspired to suppress competition. Truman decided to resolve issue by civil litigation rather than through criminal proceedings out of fear of loosing control of Middle Eastern Oil (Maugeri 73). Seven sisters are as follows:
1. Exxon (Standard Oil New Jersey)
2. Texaco (Texas Oil Company)
3. Chevron (Standard Oil California)
4. Mobil (Standard Oil new York-Vacuum oil)
5. Gulf Oil
6. Royal Dutch Shell
7. BP (Anglo-Iranian oil company)
xxix. 1955 Nasser incites Arabs to strike—against King Saud’s (of Saudi Arabia) orders.
xxx. 1969 Libyan Coup lead by Muhammar al-Qaddafi is successful. Like Nasser, Qaddafi desired to gain the upper hand with foreign oil companies. Both Nasser and Qaddafi changed the Arab viewpoint on relations with foreign oil companies.
xxxi. 1971 OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) approves a 45-55 profit-sharing formula for all members. Inspired by Quaddafi (no surprise there).
xxxii. 1990 Suddam Hussein successfully attacked and obtained control of Kuwait. Frustrated at loosing the war with Iran in the 80’s (and obtaining an enormous deficit in the process), felt that Kuwait was drawing too much oil from a field which lay under their mutual border—essentially loosing Iraq the commodity needed to repair Iraq’s deficit.
1. This maneuver gained him 20% of the world’s known oil reserves, a situation untenable to the major players in the oil industry.
2. The UN placed an embargo on both Iraqi and Kuwait oil expecting Hussein to give up.
3. After several months of strangulation and military defeat when war was finally launched against him, Hussein lit over 800 oil wells, refineries, and storage on fire. The age old, If I can’t have it no-one can complex.
4. This caused the international oil companies to pursue oil profits in other, non-OPEC countries. One of these prospects was the Caspian region.
xxxiii. 1991 the USSR dissolves, and 15 new nations states gain independence. Turbulence, instability, and desperate desire for independence ensue.
1. Oil rich Central Asian and Caucasus countries all face similar dilemmas:
a. Land locked
i. Pipelines only to Russia—preventing economic independence
ii. Lack of financing and engineers to build new transportation systems for oil and gas
b. Desire to gain independence from Russia
i. “We would prefer to eat grass if only we could be independent from Russia” economist Nia Lomadze (Kleveman 39)
c. Rotten with corruption and rife with civil wars
i. Armenia and Azerbaijan most importantly: Russia backed Armenia in gaining control of the Nagorno-Karabakh province. This sparked militant focus for Azeri rather than stabilization and growth—ultimately keeping the small oil rich country under Russia’s thumb.
2. Kazakhstan had a far better start, having already negotiated a pipeline (prior to USSR dissolution) with Chevron for development of their Tengiz oilfield (Caspian area).
a. They finalized the oil deal with chevron as early as 1993.
b. 1994 OKIOK (Offshore Kazakhstan International Operating Co.) began a seismic survey of the Kazakh-Caspian Shelf.
i. 2000 discovery of the world’s larges oilfield in 30 years (Kashagan) with something like 30-50 bb barrels of oil.
3. 1993 BP headed the contract with Azerbaijan and other small oil companies—labeling their endeavor as the AIOC (Azerbaijan International Operating Company.
4. Several Options for exportation of oil soon brought several oil hungry nations out of the woodwork:
a. Russia was the cheapest route, but undesirable to all new nation states
b. Iran, the next cheapest option: Undesirable to the US for political reasons
c. Turkey’s control of the Bosporus straight (difficult for tankers to navigate—several disastrous incidents caused Turkey to threaten limiting the number of tankers allowed to navigate the narrow straight.
d. China, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan
e. Kazakhstan with Iran, Russia, Turkmenistan, and (via Afghanistan) Iran and Pakistan
f. Turkmenistan with Turkey—via Azerbaijan and Georgia
g. Azerbaijan with Russia, Iran and Turkey
h. … And the list goes on, as countries desire to profit by forming an alliance similar to marrying their princess to their neighboring country’s prince.
5. 1998 a new pipeline actually emerges: connecting Baku to Supsa, a Georgian Port on the Black Sea (issue of Turkey limiting tankers)
6. 2002 another pipeline is completed connecting Kazakhstan’s Tengiz field to the Russian port of Novorossiysk—also on the Black Sea.
7. 2002 the scoffed at “Blue Stream” pipeline connecting Turkmenistan to Turkey by route of undersea pipe—achieving the first pipeline to be laid at phenomenal depths of 2150 meters!
8. Turkey (in the late 90’s) proposed a different plan that caught the attention of many would be international investors.
a. A pipeline stretching from Baku Azerbaijan to the Turkish port—Ceyhan. A pipeline more than 1000 miles in length. This idea, of course, was abhorrent to Russia.
b. The BTC pipeline began construction in 2005, and was completed last July (2006).
c. Recent articles have brought into light possible failures of the BTC construction. OPIC (essentially a “watchdog”) shows that there was knowledge of cracks and leakages in the pipeline coating—which could lead to corrosion and environmental damage. It seems that there was knowledge of this issue during construction, but choices were made to continue with the project.
i. Unsurprisingly—headlines from Armenian reporting agency, PanArmenian, “Pipeline construction resulted in ecological catastrophe on BTC Corridor” the interior of the article however shows that this is pure speculation.
ii. Similarly—Russian reporting agency, Regnum, with the headline, “BTC Pipeline goes to pieces” also makes speculatory claims that an environmental disaster has occurred.
i. 347 A.D. Oil wells are drilled in China up to 800 feet deep using bits attached to bamboo poles.
ii. 1264 Mining of seep oil in medieval Persia witnessed by Marco Polo on his travels through Baku.
iii. 1500s Seep oil collected in the Carpathian Mountains of Poland is used to light street lamps.
iv. 1594 Oil wells are hand dug at Baku, Persia up to 35 meters (115 feet) deep.
v. 1735 Oil sands are mined and the oil extracted in Alsace, France.
vi. 1815 Oil is produced in United States as an undesirable by-product from brine wells in Pennsylvania.
vii. 1848 First modern oil well drilled in Asia, northeast of Baku, by Russian engineer F.N. Semyenov. **Some claim that Colonel Drake built the first modern oil well in Pennsylvania—but that is actually the first well in the US
viii. 1849 Distillation of kerosene from oil by Canadian geologist Dr. Abraham Gesner. Kerosene eventually replaces whale oil as the illuminant of choice and creates a new market for crude oil. **Did this save the whales?
ix. 1878 Electric light bulb invented by Thomas Edison eliminates demand for kerosene, and the oil industry enters a recession.
x. 1883 French Rothschild’s financed a railroad to transport Baku kerosene to the Black Sea Port, Batum, in Georgia
xi. 1885 Oil burners on steam engines in the California oil fields, and later on steam locomotives, create new crude oil markets.
xii. 1886 Gasoline-powered automobiles are introduced in Europe. Before this gasoline was simply a cheap solvent produced as a byproduct of kerosene distillation.
xiii. 1892 first oil tanker sailed from Batum (the Black Sea Port) created by the English Samuel Family (later created Shell)
xiv. 1899 between 1880-1899 most Arab sheikdoms agreed not to allow any foreigners (excluding Britain) without Britain’s express permission. This lasted until the 1970’s
xv. 1910 boom in car sales helped gasoline surpass kerosene sales.
xvi. 1913 Winston Churchill obtains his goal—convincing the British government to convert navy from coal to oil power. This helped to make oil a matter of national security rather than a mere commodity.
xvii. 1915-1916 The UK made a pact with the Emir of Hejaz, Hussein, that Britain would back an uprising in Mesopotamia (now Iraq) in return for dominance over the oil.
xviii. 1918 Churchill wins the Parliament with 254/272 votes to have the government purchase 51% of BP, essentially creating a gov owned country with a private “heart”. This enabled the gov to appoint the majority of the board members and have ultimate control of the company’s actions. This changed the perspective of oil in relation to nations, and above all—strategic national alliances.
xix. 1920 Hussein’s revolt finally begins, but—to the UK’s surprise—Hussein revolts also against Britain’s intention to rule his new kingdom secretively.
xx. 1921 Britain bribes local tribes to accept Faisal Hussein as king of Iraq (formerly Kirkuk, Baghdad, and Bashra).
xxi. 1925 Britain finally achieves an official alliance with Hussein and before the pseudo assembly is formed the British Oil company TPC achieved a secure oil concession with Iraq (not officially named until 1929). Essentially—Iraq was created by Britain in the interest of national security to gain control of Mesopotamian oil.
xxii. 1938 US companies, Texaco and Chevron, begin producing commercial quantities of oil out of Saudi Arabia.
xxiii. 1943 President Roosevelt authorized the Lend-Lease Act with Saudi Arabia because such oil reserves were proving to be important to US national security (due to depletion of US sources).
xxiv. 1949 Oily Rocks (AKA Neft Dashlari) Azerbainjan, a man made island on the Caspian Sea, pioneered the first offshore oil rigs in the world.
1. 125 miles of roads link the oil rigs in the Caspian Sea
2. 600 total oil rigs (approximately 400 operable)
3. Oilrigs are now decrepit, some literally falling into the sea (as are some of the roads). Yet many are still in operation despite age.
xxv. 1951 Iran, angered that BP did not increase standards of living for Iranian employees (as agreed) and angered that they got less than 50% of profits began strategies to force BP to do this.
xxvi. 1953 US CIA creates a coup that removes Mossadegh eventually gaining control of 60% of Iranian oil (again to BP’s dismay—had BP simply agreed to Iranians initial requests they would have had a much better cut of the profits).
xxvii. 1952 Gamal Abdel Nasser headed a coup and won control of Egypt. He then (quietly for a couple of years) began to press all Arab leaders, and civilians, to take control of oil prices, demanding higher profit shares and higher prices per barrel.
xxviii. 1953Discovery of the “Seven Sisters” the 7 major oil companies who controlled 82% of world crude reserves, 80% of world production, and 76% of refineries. And they illegally conspired to suppress competition. Truman decided to resolve issue by civil litigation rather than through criminal proceedings out of fear of loosing control of Middle Eastern Oil (Maugeri 73). Seven sisters are as follows:
1. Exxon (Standard Oil New Jersey)
2. Texaco (Texas Oil Company)
3. Chevron (Standard Oil California)
4. Mobil (Standard Oil new York-Vacuum oil)
5. Gulf Oil
6. Royal Dutch Shell
7. BP (Anglo-Iranian oil company)
xxix. 1955 Nasser incites Arabs to strike—against King Saud’s (of Saudi Arabia) orders.
xxx. 1969 Libyan Coup lead by Muhammar al-Qaddafi is successful. Like Nasser, Qaddafi desired to gain the upper hand with foreign oil companies. Both Nasser and Qaddafi changed the Arab viewpoint on relations with foreign oil companies.
xxxi. 1971 OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) approves a 45-55 profit-sharing formula for all members. Inspired by Quaddafi (no surprise there).
xxxii. 1990 Suddam Hussein successfully attacked and obtained control of Kuwait. Frustrated at loosing the war with Iran in the 80’s (and obtaining an enormous deficit in the process), felt that Kuwait was drawing too much oil from a field which lay under their mutual border—essentially loosing Iraq the commodity needed to repair Iraq’s deficit.
1. This maneuver gained him 20% of the world’s known oil reserves, a situation untenable to the major players in the oil industry.
2. The UN placed an embargo on both Iraqi and Kuwait oil expecting Hussein to give up.
3. After several months of strangulation and military defeat when war was finally launched against him, Hussein lit over 800 oil wells, refineries, and storage on fire. The age old, If I can’t have it no-one can complex.
4. This caused the international oil companies to pursue oil profits in other, non-OPEC countries. One of these prospects was the Caspian region.
xxxiii. 1991 the USSR dissolves, and 15 new nations states gain independence. Turbulence, instability, and desperate desire for independence ensue.
1. Oil rich Central Asian and Caucasus countries all face similar dilemmas:
a. Land locked
i. Pipelines only to Russia—preventing economic independence
ii. Lack of financing and engineers to build new transportation systems for oil and gas
b. Desire to gain independence from Russia
i. “We would prefer to eat grass if only we could be independent from Russia” economist Nia Lomadze (Kleveman 39)
c. Rotten with corruption and rife with civil wars
i. Armenia and Azerbaijan most importantly: Russia backed Armenia in gaining control of the Nagorno-Karabakh province. This sparked militant focus for Azeri rather than stabilization and growth—ultimately keeping the small oil rich country under Russia’s thumb.
2. Kazakhstan had a far better start, having already negotiated a pipeline (prior to USSR dissolution) with Chevron for development of their Tengiz oilfield (Caspian area).
a. They finalized the oil deal with chevron as early as 1993.
b. 1994 OKIOK (Offshore Kazakhstan International Operating Co.) began a seismic survey of the Kazakh-Caspian Shelf.
i. 2000 discovery of the world’s larges oilfield in 30 years (Kashagan) with something like 30-50 bb barrels of oil.
3. 1993 BP headed the contract with Azerbaijan and other small oil companies—labeling their endeavor as the AIOC (Azerbaijan International Operating Company.
4. Several Options for exportation of oil soon brought several oil hungry nations out of the woodwork:
a. Russia was the cheapest route, but undesirable to all new nation states
b. Iran, the next cheapest option: Undesirable to the US for political reasons
c. Turkey’s control of the Bosporus straight (difficult for tankers to navigate—several disastrous incidents caused Turkey to threaten limiting the number of tankers allowed to navigate the narrow straight.
d. China, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan
e. Kazakhstan with Iran, Russia, Turkmenistan, and (via Afghanistan) Iran and Pakistan
f. Turkmenistan with Turkey—via Azerbaijan and Georgia
g. Azerbaijan with Russia, Iran and Turkey
h. … And the list goes on, as countries desire to profit by forming an alliance similar to marrying their princess to their neighboring country’s prince.
5. 1998 a new pipeline actually emerges: connecting Baku to Supsa, a Georgian Port on the Black Sea (issue of Turkey limiting tankers)
6. 2002 another pipeline is completed connecting Kazakhstan’s Tengiz field to the Russian port of Novorossiysk—also on the Black Sea.
7. 2002 the scoffed at “Blue Stream” pipeline connecting Turkmenistan to Turkey by route of undersea pipe—achieving the first pipeline to be laid at phenomenal depths of 2150 meters!
8. Turkey (in the late 90’s) proposed a different plan that caught the attention of many would be international investors.
a. A pipeline stretching from Baku Azerbaijan to the Turkish port—Ceyhan. A pipeline more than 1000 miles in length. This idea, of course, was abhorrent to Russia.
b. The BTC pipeline began construction in 2005, and was completed last July (2006).
c. Recent articles have brought into light possible failures of the BTC construction. OPIC (essentially a “watchdog”) shows that there was knowledge of cracks and leakages in the pipeline coating—which could lead to corrosion and environmental damage. It seems that there was knowledge of this issue during construction, but choices were made to continue with the project.
i. Unsurprisingly—headlines from Armenian reporting agency, PanArmenian, “Pipeline construction resulted in ecological catastrophe on BTC Corridor” the interior of the article however shows that this is pure speculation.
ii. Similarly—Russian reporting agency, Regnum, with the headline, “BTC Pipeline goes to pieces” also makes speculatory claims that an environmental disaster has occurred.
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Armenia
Armenia (2005):
Proved Oil Reserves = None yet
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = None yet
Electricity
Produced: 6.3 bb kWh
Consumed: 4.4 bb kWh
Reserve: 1.9 bb kWh
Exported: 1 bb kWh
Imported: 2.6 mm kWh
Surplus: .9974 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: N/A
Consumed: 41,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 41,000 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: N/A
Consumed: 1.33 bb m^3
Shortage: 1.48 bb m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: 1.33 bb m^3
Deficit: 1.33 bb m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/am.html
Proved Oil Reserves = None yet
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = None yet
Electricity
Produced: 6.3 bb kWh
Consumed: 4.4 bb kWh
Reserve: 1.9 bb kWh
Exported: 1 bb kWh
Imported: 2.6 mm kWh
Surplus: .9974 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: N/A
Consumed: 41,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 41,000 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: N/A
Consumed: 1.33 bb m^3
Shortage: 1.48 bb m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: 1.33 bb m^3
Deficit: 1.33 bb m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/am.html
Georgia
Georgia (2004):
Proved Oil Reserves = None yet
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 99.96 billion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Electricity
Produced: 6.8 bb kWh
Consumed: 8.5 bb kWh
Shortage: 1.7 bb kWh
Exported: 200 mm kWh
Imported: 2.4 bb kWh
Deficit: 1.2 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 1,981 bbl/day
Consumed: 13,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 11,019 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 20 mm m^3
Consumed: 1.5 bb m^3
Shortage: 1.48 bb m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: 1.5 bb m^3
Deficit: 1.5 bb m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/gg.html
Proved Oil Reserves = None yet
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 99.96 billion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Electricity
Produced: 6.8 bb kWh
Consumed: 8.5 bb kWh
Shortage: 1.7 bb kWh
Exported: 200 mm kWh
Imported: 2.4 bb kWh
Deficit: 1.2 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 1,981 bbl/day
Consumed: 13,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 11,019 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 20 mm m^3
Consumed: 1.5 bb m^3
Shortage: 1.48 bb m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: 1.5 bb m^3
Deficit: 1.5 bb m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/gg.html
Afghanistan
Afghanistan (2004):
Proved Oil Reserves = 0 bbl as of Jan 2002
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 99.96 billion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Electricity
Produced: 734.3 mm kWh
Consumed: 782.9 mm kWh
Shortage: 48.6 mm kWh
Exported: N/A
Imported: 100 mm kWh
Deficit: 100 mm kWh
Oil
Produced: N/A
Consumed: 4,500 bbl/day
Shortage: 4,500 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 20 mm m^3
Consumed: 20 mm m^3
Broke Even
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/af.html
Proved Oil Reserves = 0 bbl as of Jan 2002
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 99.96 billion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Electricity
Produced: 734.3 mm kWh
Consumed: 782.9 mm kWh
Shortage: 48.6 mm kWh
Exported: N/A
Imported: 100 mm kWh
Deficit: 100 mm kWh
Oil
Produced: N/A
Consumed: 4,500 bbl/day
Shortage: 4,500 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 20 mm m^3
Consumed: 20 mm m^3
Broke Even
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/af.html
Tajikistan
Tajikistan (2004):
Proved Oil Reserves = None yet
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = None yet
Electricity
Produced: 16.5 bb kWh
Consumed: 15.7 bb kWh
Reserve: 0.8
Exported: 4.5 bb kWh
Imported: 4.8 bb kWh
Deficit: 0.3 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 252.8 bbl/day
Consumed: 28,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 27,747.2 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 39 mm m^3
Consumed: 1.389 bb m^3
Shortage: 1.35 bb m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ti.html
Proved Oil Reserves = None yet
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = None yet
Electricity
Produced: 16.5 bb kWh
Consumed: 15.7 bb kWh
Reserve: 0.8
Exported: 4.5 bb kWh
Imported: 4.8 bb kWh
Deficit: 0.3 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 252.8 bbl/day
Consumed: 28,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 27,747.2 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 39 mm m^3
Consumed: 1.389 bb m^3
Shortage: 1.35 bb m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ti.html
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan (2004):
Proved Oil Reserves = None yet
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = None yet
Electricity
Produced: 14.1 bb kWh
Consumed: 6.8 bb kWh
Reserve: 7.3
Exported: 6.4 bb kWh
Imported: 100 mm kWh
Surplus: 6.3 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 1,378 bbl/day
Consumed: 10,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 8,622 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 29 mm m^3
Consumed: 919 mm m^3
Shortage: 890 m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: 890 mm m^3
Deficit: 890 mm m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/kg.html
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan (2004):
Proved Oil Reserves = 273 million bbl as of Jan 2002
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 2.01 Trillion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Energy
Produced: 10.8 bb kWh
Consumed: 9 bb kWh
Reserve: 0.02 bb kWh
Exported: 1 bb kWh
Imported: N/A
Surplus: 1 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 213,700 bbl/day
Consumed: 95,000 bbl/day
Reserve: 118,700 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 58.6 bb m^3
Consumed: 16.6 bb m^3
Reserve: 42 bb m^3
Exported: 42 bb m^3
Imported: N/A
Surplus: 42 bb m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/tx.html
Proved Oil Reserves = 273 million bbl as of Jan 2002
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 2.01 Trillion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Energy
Produced: 10.8 bb kWh
Consumed: 9 bb kWh
Reserve: 0.02 bb kWh
Exported: 1 bb kWh
Imported: N/A
Surplus: 1 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 213,700 bbl/day
Consumed: 95,000 bbl/day
Reserve: 118,700 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 58.6 bb m^3
Consumed: 16.6 bb m^3
Reserve: 42 bb m^3
Exported: 42 bb m^3
Imported: N/A
Surplus: 42 bb m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/tx.html
Kazakstan
Kazakstan (2004):
Proved Oil Reserves = 26 bb bbl/day as of Jan 2004
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 1.841 Trillion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Energy
Produced: 63 bb kWh
Consumed: 58 bb kWh
Reserve: 5 bb kWh
Exported: 4.9 bb kWh
Imported: 4.3 bb kWh
Surplus: 0.6 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 1.3 mm bbl/day
Consumed: 220,000 bbl/day
Reserve: 108,000 bbl/day
Exported: 890,000 bbl/day
Imported: 47,000 bbl/day
Surplus: 843 bbl/day
Natural Gas
Produced: 20.5 bb m^3
Consumed: 15.75 bb m^3
Reserve: 4.75 bb m^3
Exported: 7 bb m^3
Imported: 2.27 bb m^3
Surplus: 4.73 bb m^3
Information from CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/kz.html
Proved Oil Reserves = 26 bb bbl/day as of Jan 2004
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 1.841 Trillion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Energy
Produced: 63 bb kWh
Consumed: 58 bb kWh
Reserve: 5 bb kWh
Exported: 4.9 bb kWh
Imported: 4.3 bb kWh
Surplus: 0.6 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 1.3 mm bbl/day
Consumed: 220,000 bbl/day
Reserve: 108,000 bbl/day
Exported: 890,000 bbl/day
Imported: 47,000 bbl/day
Surplus: 843 bbl/day
Natural Gas
Produced: 20.5 bb m^3
Consumed: 15.75 bb m^3
Reserve: 4.75 bb m^3
Exported: 7 bb m^3
Imported: 2.27 bb m^3
Surplus: 4.73 bb m^3
Information from CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/kz.html
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (2004):
Proved Oil Reserves = 600 bbl as of Jan 2005
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 1.875 trillion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Electricity
Produced: 46.5 bb kWh
Consumed: 48 bb kWh
Shortage: 1.5 bb kWh
Exported: 6.8 bb kWh
Imported: 11.8 bb kWh
Deficit: 5 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 142,000 bbl/day
Consumed: 148,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 6,000 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 59.9 bb m^3
Consumed: 50.2 bb m^3
Reserve: 9.7 bb m^3
Exported: 9.7 bb m^3
Imported: N/A
Surplus: 9.7 bb m^3
Figures from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/uz.html
Proved Oil Reserves = 600 bbl as of Jan 2005
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 1.875 trillion m^3 as of Jan 2005
Electricity
Produced: 46.5 bb kWh
Consumed: 48 bb kWh
Shortage: 1.5 bb kWh
Exported: 6.8 bb kWh
Imported: 11.8 bb kWh
Deficit: 5 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 142,000 bbl/day
Consumed: 148,000 bbl/day
Shortage: 6,000 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 59.9 bb m^3
Consumed: 50.2 bb m^3
Reserve: 9.7 bb m^3
Exported: 9.7 bb m^3
Imported: N/A
Surplus: 9.7 bb m^3
Figures from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/uz.html
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (2004):
Proved Oil Reserves = 589 million bbl as of January 2002
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 849.5 billion m^3 as of January 2005
Electricity
Produced: 20.4 bb kWh
Consumed: 20.6 bb kWh
Shortage: 0.2 bb kWh
Exported: 510 mm kWh
Imported: 2.2 bb kWh
Deficit: 1.69 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 470,000 bbl/day
Consumed: 120,000 bbl/day
Reserve: 350 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 5.01 bb m^3
Consumed: 9.94 bb m^3
Shortage: 4.93 bb m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: 4.93 bb m^3
Deficit: 4.93 bb m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/aj.html
Proved Oil Reserves = 589 million bbl as of January 2002
Proved Natural Gas Reserves = 849.5 billion m^3 as of January 2005
Electricity
Produced: 20.4 bb kWh
Consumed: 20.6 bb kWh
Shortage: 0.2 bb kWh
Exported: 510 mm kWh
Imported: 2.2 bb kWh
Deficit: 1.69 bb kWh
Oil
Produced: 470,000 bbl/day
Consumed: 120,000 bbl/day
Reserve: 350 bbl/day
Exported: N/A
Imported: N/A
Natural Gas
Produced: 5.01 bb m^3
Consumed: 9.94 bb m^3
Shortage: 4.93 bb m^3
Exported: N/A
Imported: 4.93 bb m^3
Deficit: 4.93 bb m^3
Facts from CIA World Factbook (Rounded to the nearest tenth):
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/aj.html
Georgia wants Freedom--is the pipeline the answer?
photo link: http://www.doubledogmusic.com/images/2005/AzPipeMap.gifReading "The New Great Game: Blood and Oil in Central Asia" by Lutz Kleveman, I am reminded that I live in a country--that to many foreigners represents hope. Some may scoff at such a statement--no doubt because of current politics, but I've been told by foreigners while traveling about the world, even by those who have immigrated here. Why? Because no human enjoys oppression, and the US stands for freedom. While traveling abroad, in 3rd world countries, I have felt helpless in my inability to ease the suffering of the many humans who are starving, unable to gain an education, or free themselves from the oppression of their corrupt governments. While corrupt and government don't belong in the same sentence, there is no avoiding the fact that EVERY government has some level of corruptness rotting within its internal structure--yes, that includes my government as well. When I originally started this project, I desired to keep it separate from US politics, but I find that impossible. I can only attempt to see things from all angles--and report things as I see them.
The third chapter, Stalin's Legacy: Georgia, starts with a undeniable statement--one of need and hope. Senior diplomat in the Georgian foreign ministry, Alexander Rondeli, states, "We need the big oil pipeline so that we will continue to have the United States on our side against Russia" (Kleveman 31). Later he speaks about the civil wars between Georgia and Armenia, "Moscow fomented and fanned the civil wars in order to bring back its troops to Georgia, as so-called peace keepers. . . . Today Moscow keeps sixteen thousand troops in our country. This is how the Russians keep fanning the conflicts in the South Caucasus which are useful to them" (Kleveman 33). He relates the US to Georgia's national security, "Are Americans going to stand on our side or look away? The pipeline could decide this question." (Kleveman 34). Russia's interest in Georgia is entirely based upon a natural resource--black gold--oil. While they were granted a freedom not necessarily desired when the USSR disintegrated, the small country feels repressed by the Russian troops. Their government, just as corrupt as the others in this area of the world, offers little reprieve. With their hands tied, they must sell the oil to Russia, for low prices, or the dissent is fanned between Georgia and Armenia--killing thousands in a war--masked as a civil war--it is truly about control, power, money, and oil. And the problem for Georgia, as with most other central Asian & Caucasus nation states, is moving the oil to the world market. Hence the desire for the big pipeline, from Baku, Azerbaijan to Ceyhan, Turkey. Passing by Georgia, this pipeline stretching over one thousand miles. One thousand miles.
Would this pipeline really offer a freedom from oppression? Another issue that must be faced in answering this question is corruption. Who owns the oil? Who will profit from it? Will the entire country, or simply the already wealthy. Will the lords of oil gain wealth unimaginable? This does not seem like it would release the country from oppression, buy simply change who the oppressor is. And is this something that US protection can prevent? I think that answer can be found in observance of the war in Iraq. Democracy can not be forced, nor can ethical conduct. It must come from within, it can be taught--but how? And on what time-line? 5 years? 10? 20? Which is the lesser evil? Oppression from within your country or from without? So my question is... will this pipeline really be a blessing? Or will it cause internal issues of a different nature? I did what I could to help those that I could while abroad, but it is not possible for one person to save everyone, nor is it possible for one government to solve the problems of all countries. So would the US simply be taking advantage of these needy countries by providing this monster pipeline? A pipeline created in the pretense of economic gain for all involved, but who will truly benefit? Hmmmmm.
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Yanar Dag
Photo found: http://i5.pbase.com/u44/ltobias/large/28405271.NeueBilderinternetjpgCRW_4276.jpgYanar Dag is a small village just north of Baku Azerbaijan. Here flames naturally burn out of the limestone cliffs. People have come here for thousands of years to see the 'holy fires'. During the Middle ages, Zoroastrian pilgrims (worshipers of fire) would travel the Azerbaijan from Persia to see these flames (Kleveman 15).
There is a temple that was built, also north of Baku, called Atashgah. where there is an "eternal fire ablaze right in the middle of the prayer room" (Kleveman 15). There used to be a natural flow of gas to this temple, but now it is piped in to keep the flame burning.
Photo URL: http://www.sputnik.in-baku.com/inbimg/Ateshkah5.jpg
Other info from: Kleveman, Lutz. "The New Great Game: Blood and Oil in Central Asia". Grove Press: New York. 2003.
Wednesday, February 7, 2007
Gassy Dreams
http://www.rferl.org/specials/gallery/ca-pipelines/Natural-gas-pipeline.gifTurkmenistan, a land-locked country, has the 4th largest natural gas reserves in the world. This fact has done little for their economy because transporting the gas out of the country poses an expensive and risky venture. Currently they are able to pipe gas out through Russia, but that leaves them entirely dependent--and undesirable situation to say the least.
One year ago, on Feb 14th, 2006 officials from Pakistan, Iran, and Turkmenistan met to discuss building a pipeline that could benefit all three struggling countries. This pipeline has been a pipe dream since the 90's when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan. A portion of the proposed pipeline would cross Afghanistan soil, and with the volatility and lack of security it was too risky to pursue. With continued issues in Afghanistan, even after the "fall" of the Taliban--there is still not enough security to follow through with the proposal.
http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2006/02/b8cadc86-b102-44ea-bce5-6d68c87b6ec9.html
This proposed pipeline has yet to become a reality. The death of Saparmurat Niyazov (the Turkmenistan Leader) has thrown this deal up in the air. Other pipelines were considered to cross Turkey heading to Europe, but with the EU and Turkey relations it remains an iffy idea.
Turkmenistan is the 2nd largest natural gas producer in Central Asia, 2nd only to Russia. Russia is also unsure of what will happen now. Russia and Turkmenistan had just signed a 3 year agreement on gas exports into Russia, who then sells the gas in lucrative markets taking the majority of the profit for themselves. Will the new leader maintain the agreement recently signed, or will they follow a different path. With politics up in the air it remains to be seen as of yet.
Here are some excellent articles on the subject:
http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2006/12/080C63AE-3F1D-4460-A2DC-E43EC7472CAB.html
http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2006/12/37535B5A-B825-49B1-8F17-863414835E50.html
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Will energy win this war?
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/middle_east_and_asia/afghanistan_rel83.jpgAccording to the Afghan Online Press (http://www.aopnews.com/today.html) roughly 10% of Afghanis have electricity available. Today the British military announced that it cleared a hydroelectric plant of Taliban militants. Afghanistan hopes that the recovery of this resource will provide electricity to an additional 1.8 million civilians. Considering that the population (2006 estimate) is approximately 31 million, this achievement would make electricity available to an additional 5.8% of the population. The Afghan government hopes to win the support of the "regular Afghani" by improving their lives. They hope that offering more services will help to increase loyalty to the government.
Living conditions in Afghanistan are some of the worst in the world. Throw that in the pot with massive opium production and the displaced Taliban supporters, and you are going to need to be providing a lot of services to bring people around. Approximately 53% of Afghani's live below poverty level and life expectancy is only 45-46 years old!
The road to success for this impoverished country will likely be long and tumultuous. But I do think that the government has one thing right, you cannot win the support of your people if you do not find a way to make their lives more comfortable. Providing them with energy, health services, or jobs is a good idea. . . one that will take many baby steps, but hopefully build a proper foundation for a successful social and economic system.
I used the AOP article: British Troops Clear Taliban Base at Major Afghan Hydropower Dam.
Dated Feb 6, 2007
as well as the CIA World Factbook
Friday, February 2, 2007
Axis of Evil
map found at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/commonwealth/azerbaijan_pol_2004.jpgWhile Azerbaijan's main export is oil (approximately 90% of all exports), 49% of the population remains below the poverty line. This is not due to lack of work, unemployment is lower than that in the US, in 2006 the average rate was 1.2%. The problem in this energy rich country is the age old have's verses the have not's issue. A small percent of the population owns the majority of the resources.
One would hope that the government would put measures in place to raise the standard of living for all of the civilians. But when your government is run by the very same people who control the resources, the voice of the underdog is very small. Freedom of press is limited, and dangers to the journalists who speak out against policies, created to increase the wealth of the already staggeringly wealthy, often include death threats.
Is oil the root of all evil in the world today? It certainly incites greed, as corrupt owners of this valuable resource lust after power and wealth. It incites wars and corruption. It brings death to those who fight for it, as well as the environment in many ways. The Caspian sea is polluted from oil spills, rendering it practically unusable. Animals of all sorts who come in contact with the material have little chance of survival. Air pollution is thick with smog, although it does offer more beautiful sunsets. Vehicle emissions worldwide are adding to the looming problem of global warming.
All these points to consider lead me to wonder if our world would not be better off without this natural resource.
Information taken from:
http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/2/45522DAB-9C03-41A2-974B-A4D2B26292F0.html
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/aj.html
Thursday, February 1, 2007
Limited Supplies
Map of Tajikistan taken from http://www.tjus.org/It seems rather ironic that a country amidst a wealth of fuel would find it necessary to limit energy use for the general population. According to the CIA factbook Tajikistan has one of the lowest GDP rates of the fifteen former Soviet countries. In 2006 unemployment rates hit 12% and 64% of the population lives below poverty.
Among it's many natural resources, natural gas supplies are limited. In 2004 Tajikistan produced 39 million cubic meters of gas, but consumed 1.389 billion cubic meters. With energy prices soaring as they have, you can imagine the costs to import gas for daily operations. https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ti.html
Because Tajikistan's primary gas distributor, Tajikgaz, gets its gas from Uzbekistan--who has apparently doubled the price of gas. Because they owe Uzbekistan approximately $3 million, and Tajikgaz has only received payment for 40% of the gas they have supplied to the state (both industrial and residential), they have decided to limit the hours of the day in which gas will be available. Tajikgaz Director, Shakvat Shoimav, will be limiting gas availability, for households, to only SIX hours per day until a solution to the debt is found. http://www.caucaz.com/home_eng/depeches.php?idp=1497
These measures may seem extremely harsh, but at the same time--at least they have not entirely shut off the gas to the consumers who have been unable to pay. while the hours of the day in which people are able to use gas is limited, they are still able to cook, do laundry, use heat and take warm showers (assuming people in Tajikistan take hot showers).
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Introduction
Image taken from link (on right) labeled Pipe Line PoliticsThis is my first post for this blog. My intention is to post something that I have learned every day--we'll see how good my discipline is. I am taking a history seminar on Central Asia and the Caucasus, with an AMAZING professor, that is part history and part political science. My focus is on the Oil and Gas situation.
So where do I start. LOL. No where and everywhere at once. As you can see I have added many links to news and information sites on this region. These were all recommended by my professor.
Please feel free to comment, while I'd like to think I interpret my research correctly... I am open and interested in the feedback and knowledge that you may offer. Happy reading!
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