Major Oil Exporters Research Articles

Energy conservation measures in Indonesia

Indonesia is a country with a large, predominantly rural population in an early stage of development, which accounts for a low per capita income and energy consumption and a relatively small number of motor vehicles. It is also a major oil exporter. Oil is the predominant exported commodity and the principal source of government income. These facts set Indonesia in a category apart from most other countries in the region as far as energy is concerned. Heavily subsidized kerosene and gasoil, as well as firewood used for fueling domestic cooking stoves, are very important sources of domestically consumed energy. Yet any attempt at increasing the domestic price of kerosene automatically results in its substitution by firewood and increases the damage to the environment. Thus efforts at promoting efficiency in energy use in this area stem primarily from socio-economic and environmental considerations. Nevertheless action at promoting more efficient use of oil-derived energy is being carried out in order to increase the amount of oil available for export. This action has begun only very recently and is still in its initial stages. It began by educating people on the energy problem and raising awareness of its importance. This compaign is now being intensified to reach directly the consumers in all social strata of the population. Taking an inventory of the major energy consumers and assessing the way they use it will follow. This work has just begun. Therefore, it is too early to have meaningful statistical data on the subject.

Energy Planning in Latin America: A Brief Review of Selected Countries

Present conditions in the international energy market and the problems they pose for Latin America hardly need emphasis, especially the uncertainty with respect to the availability and price of specific forms like oil. These concerns are, of course, aggravated by the need to respond to the short-term severe dislocations in the energy market, while at the same time taking coherent steps toward long-term solutions of national energy problems. Indeed, how should oil importing countries offset price increases, which exacerbate national deficits and debt service; deal with inflation, which raises the cost of developing indigenous resources; and successfully increase exports, when a number of other countries around the world are pursuing similar export expansion policies? While in broad terms the international energy market imposes a set of constraints upon all Latin America, there is a wide variety of responses among the countries themselves. The oil importing countries (Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Brazil) face a set of problems different from that of more-or-less self sufficient nations (Argentina, Colombia), which is in turn quite different from the major oil exporter (Venezuela). The needs of each country are, therefore, a combination of the international context and the specific situation within a country, and this is reflected in the nature of their energy planning and policy institutions.

The fuel situation in Eastern Europe

Abstract : Eastern Europe is deficient in fuels, especially liquid fuels. The deficiency will worsen as the economic growth and industrialization of the area proceed according to plans and expectations. The Soviet Union, the major ally of the East European states and a major oil exporter cannot, and, in any case, probably would not fulfill expected bloc-nation requirements. Faced with such a situation the East Europeans will have to give serious consideration to the following alternatives: (1) Adopt a policy of fuel substitution and self-sufficiency with disastrous consequences for the cost of East European products. (2) Participate more actively in the expansion of oil extraction in the Soviet Union, chiefly through capital exports. (3) Improve the technology of its manufactured exports to the Soviet Union thus making it more worthwhile for the latter to export more oil to the area. (4) Strive seriously for a thorough change in the trade pattern to enable Eastern Europe to earn enough hard currency to purchase oil in the world market and establish a system of large-scale barter arrangements with the developing oil-producing countries, that is to say with the Middle East. (5) Search for new sources of energy which would mean building an impressive nuclear establishment. (Author)