Oil resources: who gets what how
The allocation and development of natural resources, particularly oil, are problems of growing international concern. Who should be allowed to develop the resources. At what rate should exploration and development take place. How should the allocation and licensing of government-owned sources be handled. The author focuses on petroleum resources and government policy to answer these and other important questions. He examines the recent experiences of Great Britain and Norway in the licensing of private companies to exploit government-owned oil resources in the North Sea. He compares two systems of allocation--the auction system, practiced on a regular basis only in the United States, and various discretionary systems--and makes a strong case for the economic efficiency of the auction system. The auction and discretionary systems are compared from an economic standpoint, but the bulk of the book is an analytic history of the discretionary policies that were pursued by Britain and Norway and of the problems that have arisen under the U.S. auction system. Although the goals of these countries differ, Dam suggests that a properly implemented auction system would better serve the interests of both governments and oil companies. Britain's discretionary approach seems to have led inexorably to policy disputes of growing magnitude as broader issues, notably oil taxation were shaped by the need to remedy the weaknesses of the discretionary system. The purpose of this book is not so much to argue the well-known theoretical advantages of the auction system as it is to use case studies to reveal why governments turn to discretionary policies and what practical consequences follow. The lessons drawn from these studies can be applied to the development of other scarce resources. (from book jacket)
- OSTI ID:
- 7349641
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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POLICY AND ECONOMY
02 PETROLEUM
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
PETROLEUM
ALLOCATIONS
EXPLOITATION
PETROLEUM INDUSTRY
EFFICIENCY
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
LICENSING
MANAGEMENT
MINERAL RESOURCES
NORTH SEA
NORWAY
TAXES
UNITED KINGDOM
USA
ATLANTIC OCEAN
ENERGY SOURCES
EUROPE
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
INDUSTRY
NORTH AMERICA
RESOURCES
SCANDINAVIA
SEAS
SURFACE WATERS
294002* - Energy Planning & Policy- Petroleum
290200 - Energy Planning & Policy- Economics & Sociology
020700 - Petroleum- Economics
Industrial
& Business Aspects