Recent Evolution of Petroleum Exploration and Exploitation Agreements in Developing Countries: New Approaches to Introduce More Flexibility and Progressivity in the Contractual Terms

Over the last decade rather important changes have occurred in the legal and economic aspects of international petroleum agreements for exploration and exploitation. In the late nineteen seventies, as a consequence of the strong increase in oil prices, there was a general tightening of contractual terms and conditions. With the present oil market imbalance, characterized by sharp price falls, there is a tendency to ease the applicable contractual terms. In such a rapidly changing environment, the economic terms contained in a petroleum agreement should be properly designed to introduce a certain element of flexibility and progressivity in regard to the government take, without unduly complicating the fiscal package or discouraging potential investors. This is the present challenge for international petroleum negotiators.     

Natural gas pricing policies in Southeast Asia

The very dynamic economies of Southeast Asia have recently been experiencing a rapid increase in energy demand. Parallel to this development, there has been an increase in the utilization of indigenous natural gas resources. This article reviews gas-pricing policies in the region, which partly explain the rise in gas utilization. Although diverse, energy pricing policies in Southeast Asia address the common objective of enhancing domestic gas production and utilization.
The article concludes that a more rational gas-pricing policy framework is emerging in the region. In global terms, gas pricing in the region tends to converge in a market-related framework, despite the many different pricing objectives of individual countries, and the predominance of non-economic pricing objectives in certain countries (especially gas-rich nations). Specifically, governments have been flexible enough to follow global trends and initiate changes in contractual agreements (pricing and profit-sharing), giving oil companies more favourable terms, and encouraging continued private investment in gas development. At the same time, promotional pricing has also been used to increase utilization of gas, through set prices and adjusted taxes achieving a lower price level compared to substitute fuels.
For an efficient gas-pricing mechanism, refinements in the pricing framework should be undertaken, as demand for gas approaches existing and/or forecast production capacities.     

Agreement about commodity agreements?

In spite of the shifts in global economic power the scope for increased intervention in commodity markets remains restricted. We have witnessed the beginnings of some changes with the increased willingness of the richer countries to discuss the commodity issue. The interest in individual commodity agreements is likely to be extended as consumers place a higher valuation on security of supplies but commodity agreements can only secure moderate and limited objectives. They represent only one of a number of tools which are available in the attempt to secure a new world economic order and they will need to be used in conjunction with increased flows of foreign aid, trade liberalisation, and schemes of compensatory finance. The integrated approach to commodities seems fraught with difficulties as does any realistic scheme for the indexation of commodity prices.     

The multi-disciplinary evaluation of a national agri-environment scheme

With an increasing amount of public funds being spent on agri-environmental schemes effective methods have to be developed to evaluate them. As many schemes have multiple objectives there is a need for a multi-disciplinary approach to any evaluation. A method was developed to assess the degree to which ecological, landscape, historical and access objectives for the Countryside Stewardship Scheme (CSS) in England have been met. The method used a sample of 484 agreements for which data were collected from surveys, a desk study and an interview with the agreement holder. These data were then evaluated by an expert team of an ecologist, landscape architect, landscape historian, and a social scientist specializing in rural affairs. The team were subsequently brought together with a Chair to discuss their findings for each agreement, allocating scores for each of five criteria: agreement negotiation; appropriateness, environmental effectiveness, compliance and side effects. The additionality that each agreement was likely to provide was also assessed. The results of this process suggest that in the majority of cases the CSS agreements should maintain or enhance the environment in terms of ecology, landscape, and landscape history and increase public enjoyment of the countryside. Thirty-six percent of agreements showed high additionality and 38% medium additionality which demonstrates that the CSS is likely to provide a benefit to society. Agreement negotiation, predicted environmental effectiveness and predicted compliance all improved significantly over the period 1996-98. Recommendations made from this project have been implemented by the Government department to improve the CSS. The multi-disciplinary method was successful and, with further development, could be used for assessment of any agri-environment scheme, or potentially any conservation project or broader 'rural development' scheme encompassing environmental, economic and social objectives. A key to success is the need for the criteria to be tailored for the project concerned and clearly established at the beginning.     

中美石油资源法律制度比较研究

石油和天然气是国民经济运行与发展的“血液”,但出于种种原因,我国目前尚未出台专门规范整个油气行业领域的《石油天然气法》,只有一些位阶较低、效力有限的行政性规章与政策。通过研究美国石油天然气法律的具体制度安排,结合我国油气资源的现行制度与政策,为我国油气资源法律制度的完善提出建议。     

Environmental Pollution Challenges and Associated Planning and Management Issues Facing Offshore Oil and Gas Field Development in the UK

Reducing the environmental impact of offshore operations is one of the most pressing challenges facing the oil and gas industry in Europe today. A study was conducted to review the issues by literature search, and consultation with stakeholders and experts. It was clear from the literature search that considerable research had been dedicated to: protecting the marine environment; achieving compliance with legislative controls; assessing the technical and economic feasibility of platform disposal options; and ecological surveying. By comparison, considerably less research had been carried out in other important areas such as: assessing the impacts wastes returned to shore for disposal; identifying sustainable strategies for operations; and assessing and mitigating against adverse impacts from atmospheric emissions. It is clear that the environmental regulatory regime offshore will become tougher and have an increasing influence on offshore oil and gas field environmental planning and management. Future regulatory developments include: a streamlining of the offshore oil and gas environmental regulatory regime; the introduction of the Habitats Directive into the licensing system; and the Offshore Combustion Installations (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Regulations 1999. In addition, post Kyoto regulatory developments and societal concern over atmospheric pollution, will increasingly focus efforts on reducing the emission of global warming gases. These changes, coupled with the uncertainty over how resilient the environment is to perturbation, present a need to clearly manage environmental information.     

防治油气集输过程中烃类污染的主要途径

烃类是油气田主要的大气污染物,主要来源于油气集输过程中的烃类损耗。降低烃类损耗,回收挥发气体,是减少大气污染的重要途径。孤东油田应用大罐抽气、原油稳定、轻烃回收等工艺对烃类进行回收治理,文章介绍了使用的工艺系统,分析了治理技术的经济效益,得出结论：采用大罐抽气、原油稳定和轻烃回收技术防治油气田烃类污染是可行的,技术成熟,工艺较简单,投资少,见效快,效益明显。在油气田全面推广应用,可以大大降低油气田的烃类污染负荷     

发动机机油净化装置的研制与应用

车辆发动机每年在换季时都需要更换不同牌号的机油。为了使换下来的机油能够在第二年重复再利用,中原油田分公司采油五厂研制了污油机油净化处理装置。实践证明,净化后的机油完全可以达到使用技术要求。这样既能减少浪费,又能保护环境不受污染,经济效益也十分明显。     

Shale gas development and community response: perspectives from Treaty 8 territory,British Columbia

Northeast British Columbia (BC), Canada, is the site of a fast-growing shale gas industry that is a cornerstone of the current provincial government's economic policy. In this paper, we explore the perspectives of local First Nations (members of Treaty 8) regarding governance of this industry, focusing in particular on the experiences of the Fort Nelson First Nation (FNFN). Based on findings from 15 in-depth interviews with staff from four Treaty 8 First Nations, the Treaty 8 Tribal Association, oil and gas companies, and the Government of BC, we argue that current governance processes fail to adequately protect the environment and treaty rights. We also explore the diverse tactics that the FNFN is using to gain influence over shale gas development within its territories as the Nation seeks to achieve “balanced development” that protects the local ecology and treaty rights while maximising local economic benefits. Through an array of tactics and collaboration with diverse actors, the FNFN has been partially successful in challenging industry's social license to operate and has brought the provincial government back to the table to negotiate new decision-making arrangements on a “government to government” basis. Still, the regulation and management of a fast-paced global industry are a vast burden for a small community to bear. The FNFN's work has also shown the need for further research on how local efforts for equitable and environmentally sustainable approaches to shale gas regulation can be scaled up, institutionalised, and used to create political opportunities in other contexts.     

Oil Exploration in the Developing Countries: Poor Geology or Poor Contracts?

The present geographic pattern of investment in oil and gas exploration is skewed away from the developing countries and towards the developed countries. This paper presents statistical data relevant to this situation, analyzes its causes, and proposes solutions. The paper argues that this phenomenon is largely distributional, arising from continuing difficulties in reaching 'equitable' contractual agreements regarding the distribution of risks, benefits and costs, compounded by uncertainity about contract sancity. Both parties could gain if contracts were designed, on a country-by-country basis, to (1) take better advantage of comparative ability to assume different categories of risk; (2) ensure efficient project management; and (3) be more self-enforcing.     

An institutional interpretation of unitization legislation: the case of Texas and Oklahoma

During the production of an oil and gas reservoir the common pool problem asserts itself as multiple users have the right to withdraw hydrocarbons from the same source of supply. Unitization offers a private contractual solution to this problem. Texas and Oklahoma have both adopted legislation enabling the formation of unit operating agreements that allow for a private contractual solution to the common pool resource problem. Intriguingly Oklahoma has adopted the most liberal unitization statute of any major oil producing state and Texas the most restrictive. The difference between Texas and Oklahoma has traditionally been explained by assessing the relative influence of majors and independents in the two states at the time the legislation was adopted. However, this explanation while no doubt partially valid does not tell the complete story. An examination of land tenure patterns in the two states and an analysis of field characteristics from a random sample taken from each state indicates that the Oklahoma may have been facing a far greater problem in regard to the fracturing of the mineral estate and thus a more drastic solution was required.     

提高油田伴生气回收率的研究与应用

文章阐述了陆梁油田在开发过程中采用油气混输技术、天然气发电机橇技术、锅炉烧湿气等技术,将伴生气回收率提高至92.10%;油气混输技术能够实现边缘区块油气全密闭输送;集中处理站锅炉燃烧湿气技术可增加处理站天然气外输气量,降低运行成本;小型活动天然气发电机橇的应用,可以充分利用富裕天然气降低生产成本,同时减少富裕天然气火炬放空燃烧量,收到了良好的经济效益和环境效益。     

Environmental management in resource-rich Alberta, Canada: first world jurisdiction, Third World analogue?

Economic growth is frequently touted as a cure for environmental ills, particularly for those in Third World countries. Here we examine that paradigm in a case study of Alberta, Canada, a wealthy, resource-rich province within a wealthy nation. Through provincial-scale datasets, we examine the increasing pressures of the forest, petroleum, and agricultural industries upon the ecosystems of Alberta within management, economic, and political contexts. We advance the thesis that economic activity leads to environmental degradation unless ecosystem-based management is integrated into economic decision making. Agricultural lands cover 31.7%, and forest management areas leased to industry cover 33.4% of Alberta; both continue to increase in extent. The rate of logging (focused on old-growth by government policy) continues a decades-long exponential rise. Current Alberta annual petroleum production is 52.5 million m3 crude oil and 117 billion m3 of gas. As of early 1999, there were approximately 199,025 oil and gas wells and a conservative total of approximately 1.5-1.8 million km of seismic lines in Alberta. Fire occurrence data indicate no downward trends in annual area burned by wildfire, which may be characterized as driven by climate and inherently variable. When logging and wildfire are combined, the annual allowable cut in Alberta is unsustainable, even when only timber supply is considered and the effects of expanding agriculture and oil and gas activities are ignored. Ecosystem degradation in Alberta is pervasive and contrasts prominently with a high standard of living. A wealth of ecological data exists that indicates current resource-based economic activities are non-sustainable and destructive of ecosystem health yet these data are not considered within the economic decision making process. Given the complex, compounded, and increasing ecosystem perturbations, a future of unpleasant ecological surprises is likely. We conclude with tentative predictions as to where current trends in Alberta may lead if decisions biased against ecosystems continue.     

The supply and demand outlook for energy in the Asia—Pacific region

Years of strong economic growth in the Asia—Pacific region have resulted in unprecedented increases in energy demand in the region, particularly for oil and gas. The supply of oil and gas to the region will become more problematic as the decade progresses. Already 50% dependent on imported oil, this figure will rise to nearly 65% by 2000. Because high rates of domestic oil demand growth among traditional petroleum exporters - Indonesia. China and Malaysia - will absorb exportable surpluses, the region will find itself dependent on the Middle East for at least 90% of its imported oil needs by 2000. Currently linked to oil, LNG prices cannot justify the investments needed to bring new greenfield projects on line. With demand expected to exceed 67 million tonnes (Mt) in 2000 and 100 Mt in 2010. over 50 Mt of new capacity will be needed; satisfying this demand will necessitate a new pricing structure for LNG, raising the price substantially above the relative price of crude oil.     

Transparency,consultation and conflict: Assessing the micro‐level risks surrounding the drive to develop Peru's Amazonian oil and gas resources

Since the 1990s, successive Governments in Peru have sought to expand the exploration and production of the country's oil and gas resources. This economic agenda poses significant opportunities and risks which are usually considered at the macro‐level and framed by debates regarding the so‐called “natural resource curse”. While risks such as “Dutch disease” are important to consider, a worrying set of short‐term issues surrounds the impacts of rapid changes brought on by oil and gas industrial development at the micro‐level, namely, those that affect local communities and the environment. In the case of Peru, this is especially relevant to the vast areas of ecologically sensitive and previously under‐developed Amazonia that are now under concession to oil and gas companies. Low levels of industry transparency combined with a lack of uniform free, prior and informed consent are exacerbating community‐level grievances, and the conflicts to which they can lead. As the oil and gas industry expands in the Peruvian Amazon, the risk of conflict is likely to prove far harder to minimize or ameliorate than are the challenges of managing industry revenues and the risk of currency appreciation most often associated with the natural resource curse.     

Electric power and the environment: an analysis of pollutant emissions at Argentine state-owned electric power stations

This paper describes the impact on particulate and 'greenhouse gases' emissions of substitution policies implemented by Argentine state-owned electric power stations. Those policies involve the substitution, on the one hand, of hydroelectric and nuclear energy for conventional thermal energy and, on the other hand, of natural gas for fuel oil, diesel oil and coal. As additional investments are required in conventional thermal power stations to prevent environmental pollution, the investment savings generated by substitution policies have been calculated. While the environmental impact of hydroelectric, nuclear and natural gas facilities is locally significant and is experienced in geographical areas away from cities, there can be no doubt that the substitution policies implemented in the Argentine electricity sector have overall both ecological and economic benefits.     

塔里木油田零散井放空天然气CNG回收技术

针对油气田勘探开发过程中,存在一些偏远零散单井伴生气放空问题。中国石油塔里木油田通过反复调研和论证,采取CNG技术回收放空的天然气,不仅实现了节能减排,降低了对环境的污染,同时还产生了明显的经济效益。     

浅析油气田回注污水余热的利用——以辽河油田公司沈阳采油厂为例

辽河油田公司沈阳采油厂的原油伴生水,平均温度47℃,若不加以利用地将温水直接回注到地层,将会造成热能浪费。如果通过余热利用,则节约能源。文章通过现状调查、经济、技术、政策可行性分析认为:沈阳采油厂污水余热的可挖潜力很大,回用污水余热在技术与政策方面均有较大的可行性且具有可观的经济效益。     

Indigenous Resource Rights and Mining Companies in North America and Australia

A Contrast is made between indigenous resource rights in North America and Australia. The extent to which the indigenous people of these two continents may prevent mining and exploration on their land is examined. It is demonstrated that whereas some Australian Aboriginals have recently acquired limited veto rights to prevent development, the veto rights of the indigenous people in North America are long-standing and unqualified. In addition, the terms and conditions of mining and petroleum agreements which have been entered into by indigenous people in North America are discussed. These agreements are shown to be better than agreements signed with Australian Aboriginals.     

Brazil's mineral development: Potential and problems

Although Brazil is well endowed with natural resources, some of these are unexploited due to poor communications and political instability. The authors review present government policy and the situation with regard to oil and gas, iron ore, manganese and steel and other minerals, and conclude that Brazil has a bright economic future.