Iran’s Shanghai Dream
July 25th, 2016
Via Foreign Affairs, an interesting article on the pros and cons of Iran joining China’s security club: In late June, during the 15th annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a China-led security bloc, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the signing of the U.S.-Iranian nuclear deal and the lifting of UN sanctions meant that […]
Read more »Iran Aims To Double Oil Exports, But There Are Hurdles
July 13th, 2016
Via Oil Price.com, an article on Iran’s petroleum ambitions: Although its post-sanctions production boom appears to be have waned, the Islamic Republic of Iran still hopes to increase its energy exports, exploit new production contracts and expand its market share in 2016. Mohsen Ghamsari, director of international affairs for the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) […]
Read more »Islamic State Oil Production
July 7th, 2016
Courtesy of STRATFOR (subscription required), an interesting look at the Islamic State’s oil production: Oil production is a crucial source of income for the Islamic State. As of March, it accounted for nearly half of the group’s total revenue, bringing in roughly $20 million each month. Beyond providing funds, oil refining is also a much-needed […]
Read more »China’s One Belt One Road Policy: Can History Repeat Itself?
July 7th, 2016
Via Future Directions International, an article on China’s One Belt, One Road strategy: Key Points China has proposed a new international strategy, One Belt One Road Policy. The international treaty aims to recreate a modern version of the historical Silk Road route trading route from China to Europe. Modifications of the old Silk Road route […]
Read more »Libya’s Rival NOC Oil Companies Agree To Merge
July 5th, 2016
Courtesy of Reuters, an article on consolidation in the Libyan petroleum sector: Libya’s state energy company National Oil Corporation has agreed to merge with a rival company established in the east by one of the country’s two former competing governments, the NOC said in a statement. The merging of the two NOCs is a positive […]
Read more »Fragile States Index
June 28th, 2016
Via Foreign Policy, the annual Fragile States Index: RANK NAME TOTAL DEMOGR. PRESS. REFUGEES AND IDPS GROUP GRIEVANCE HUMAN FLIGHT UNEVEN DEV. POVERTY & ECON. DECLINE LEGIT. OF THE STATE PUBLIC SERVICES HUMAN RIGHTS SECURITY APPARATUS FACTION. ELITES EXTERNAL INTERVENTION 1 Somalia 114.0 9.7 9.7 9.4 9.5 9.3 9.0 9.5 9.0 9.7 9.7 10.0 9.5 […]
Read more »Focusing primarily on The New Seven Sisters - the largely state owned petroleum companies from the emerging world that have become key players in the oil & gas industry as identified by Carola Hoyos, Chief Energy Correspondent for The Financial Times - but spanning other nascent opportunities around the globe that may hold potential in the years ahead, Wildcats & Black Sheep is a place for the adventurous to contemplate & evaluate the emerging markets of tomorrow.