Structural realists argue the nation-state is a unitary actor that conducts foreign policy without regard to domestic politics. Anarchy, the lack of any controlling authority, is the dominant fact of life for states within the international system. Operating within this self-hel…
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Saudi Arabia continues to be an anomaly for democratic researchers because of its assumed vast wealth. It also continues to be a hot bed for radical Islamist rhetoric. Oil’s relationship with democracy asserts that the presence of the former prevents that latter by mere happenst…
The experiences and responses of individuals living in mineral enclaves command a lot of scholarly attention. Such attention is evident in the Niger Delta of Nigeria where neoliberal oil exploration has gone on for the past five decades. Yet missing in the delta narratives is th…
This study explores varying outcomes of energy cooperation, defined as diplomatic relations, bilateral trade, and investment in oil and natural gas. Tests of theories pertinent to energy security - broadly speaking, realism, liberalism, and domestic politics—reveal that they alo…
Since the discovery of oil in the Niger Delta in 1958, there has been an ongoing low-level conflict among foreign oil companies, the federal government, and rural community members in southern Nigeria. Armed insurgents and small cadres of male protesters have resisted oil activi…
This thesis analyzes the social responsibility multinational oil and gas enterprises have with respect to the societal and environmental impact of their operations. Historically, these firms have exploited natural resources in regions around the world without adhering to any str…
This dissertation examines the way in which the Kazakhstani state redefined its role in managing oil and gas resources between 1992 and 1998. The governments of hydrocarbon-rich post-Soviet republics such as Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan faced the common chall…
This dissertation makes three related theoretical points. First, transitology—the theory that all former Soviet states are now constructing new institutions based upon Western models of market economies and democracies—is theoretically and empirically flawed. Instead, a post-col…
This dissertation examines how Britain's efforts to preserve London's role as one of the world's preeminent financial centers after World War II significantly influenced its relations with countries and companies involved in the production, transportation, and marketing of Middl…
The Caspian region is considered to be one of the next oil and gas frontiers. Along with the re-distribution of political power and the emergence of new balances after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the continuous waves of change also have had significant effects on the prosp…
The nineteenth century rivalry between the Russian Empire and Great Britain over Central Asia, known as the "great game," was triggered by the quest for power and dominance. This study revisits Sir Halford Mackinder's thesis, which viewed the "heartland," consisting of Russia an…
Experience has shown that the response of oil wells to sandstone matrix acidizing is different from the response of gas wells. For oil wells, the improvement in permeability resulting from the stimulation treatment peaks at a certain acid volume and then decreases as the acid vo…
The United States seized upon the opportunity presented with the end of the Cold War to engage in a high-yield, low-cost strategy to limit potential future threats from Russia. To accomplish this, the U.S. expanded its sphere of influence into areas hitherto controlled by Russia…
The economy of Saudi Arabia is essentially dependent on oil production which is a depletable resource. Thus, the fundamental question facing the Saudi Arabian economy is whether oil revenue can be used to create a self-sustaining economy. To address this issue, this study will a…
Why is there a variance in the size of investment by American multinational corporations (MNCs) in the oil and gas sectors of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan? All ten of the leading oil MNCs in the world petroleum industry have invested in the region. However, the size of investment b…
The spontaneous ignition characteristics of a super-light oil was investigated. The process involved saturating sand with the crude oil and oxidizing at a temperature of 135°C, the temperature of the reservoir from which the oil is produced. Various process parameters such as ai…
Oil is one of the most widespread high-density energy sources in the world: its importance for the military-industrial complex became even more evident in the postwar context. In this framework, establishing the conditions for accessing the world's oil-rich areas became essentia…
The oil and gas industry in Libya has suffered a number of health and safety accidents including environmental disasters due to the nature of the work involved and the hazardous materials it handles in all facets of exploration and production. Such issues have hitherto not recei…