Economic Study Of Oil And Gas Exploration

One of the characteristics of oil in its early exploration and production has been the requirement of large capital investments for exploratory activity associated with unexplored fields surrounding new oil reserves, and costly development expenditures that are subsequently needed for extension and expanding of such fields once they were explored. Therefore, the evolution of the oil industry had not been and cannot be treated in a manner of a mom-and-pop enterprise in which capital has yet to turn into a well-developed process of concentration and centralization. On the other hand, in the late nineteenth century, Taylorism was just giving rise to standardization and thus automated assembly line mass production in need of capital on a scale beyond individual wealth. That is why oil was characterized by the assemblage of several financial syndicates for the venture of exploration in both the United States and abroad. And it is the minimum size of capital that in part plays a pivotal role in development of capitalist competition in oil and in other businesses. The genesis of hydrocarbon can be traced to colonial fusion of capitalistically developed and undeveloped parts of the world--a world whose overwhelming majority had not yet lived within capitalism proper.Exploration for petroleum originated in the latter part of the nineteenth century when geologists began to map land features that were favorable for the collection of oil in a reservoir. Of particular interest to geologists were outcrops that provided evidence of alternating layers of porous and impermeable rock. The porous rock (typically a sandstone, limestone, or dolomite) provides the reservoir for the petroleum while the impermeable rock (typically clay or shale) prevents migration of the petroleum from the reservoir.A basic rule of thumb in the upstream (or producing) sector of the oil and gas industry has been (and maybe still is in some circles of exploration technology) that the best place to find new crude oil or natural gas is near formations where it has already been found. The financial risk of doing so is far lower than that associated with drilling a rank wildcat hole in a prospective, but previously unproductive, area.you can get all the information about exploring oil and gas, economics, physics, and engineering information

Engineers seek solutions to problems, and the economic viability of each potential solution is normally considered along with the technical merits. This is typically true for the petroleum sector, which includes the global processes of exploration, production, refining, and transportation. Decisions on an investment in any oil or gas field development are made on the basis of its value, which is judged by a combination of a number of economic indicators. Economic Analysis of Oil and Gas Engineering Operations focuses on economic treatment of petroleum engineering operations and serves as a helpful resource for making practical and profitable decisions in oil and gas field development. Reflects major changes over the past decade or so in the oil and gas industry Provides thorough coverage of the use of economic analysis techniques in decision-making in petroleum-related projects Features real-world cases and applications of economic analysis of various engineering problems encountered in petroleum operations Includes principles applicable to other engineering disciplines This work will be of value to practicing engineers and industry professionals, managers, and executives working in the petroleum industry who have the responsibility of planning and decision-making, as well as advanced students in petroleum and chemical engineering studying engineering economics, petroleum economics and policy, project evaluation, and plant design.

This book, originally published in 1996, traces the development of US government policy toward the oil industry during the 1920s and 1930s when the domestic syustem of production control was established. It then charts the deveopment and collapse of oil import controls, and the wild scramble for economic rents generated by Government regulation. It discusses the two oil crises and the ‘phantom’ Gulf War crisis, and the importance of public opinion in shaping the policy agenda. It also provides an in-depth study of Congressional oil votes from the 1950s to the 1980s and the formation of oil policy, beginning with theories of economic regulation, the role of interest groups in developing the policy agenda and the role of money in politics.

Any discussion of the various facets of petroleum policy in the United States rests to a greater or less extent on the issue of sensitivity of petroleum exploration, and hence of new petroleum discoveries to economic incentives. Indeed, a principle argument in favour of having a special petroleum policy at all is that domestic petroleum exploration is so sensitive to economic considerations that in the absence of special incentives exploration expenditures would sharply decrease, as would the amount of petroleum discovered; consequently, the nation’s known oil resources would be reduced to an extent dangerous in the event of an international crisis. This study attempts to answer the question: how sensitive are new petroleum discoveries to economic incentives? This book will be of interest to students of environmental studies.