The European Union's accounting policy analyzed from an ethical perspective: The case of petroleum resources, prospecting and evaluation

Abstract

This article uses Habermasian philosophy as a reading grid to understand the eminently political aspect of international accounting standard-setting. We specifically analyze the accounting regulations specific to the exploration for and the evaluation of mineral resources in the European context. The rise of the IASC and its successor, the IASB, favors the emergence of a new phase in accounting standard-setting, with a shift from a ruling logic to regulations that put the economic and social actors at the forefront of the negotiations. This change is particularly obvious in the notorious exception allowed by IFRS 6 (Exploration for and evaluation of mineral resources) exempting applicants from paragraphs 10–12 of the IAS 8. This example allows us to question the legitimacy of international accounting standardization and the ethical problems it poses.