Matthew J. Sagers

The Energy Industries of the Former USSR: A Mid-Year Survey

A specialist on the energy industries of the former USSR assesses trends in the production of oil, natural gas, coal, and electrical power during 1992 and thereafter, and surveys prospects for performance based on developments through June of 1993. Particular attention is devoted to the impacts of changing organizational and pricing policies on energy production, the effects of disrupted interenterprise linkages as a result of the USSRs disintegration, and the possible effects on export prospects of changes in the level of domestic consumption and foreign demand. Coverage includes information about major joint-venture extraction projects and proposed export pipelines. 9 tables, references.

REGIONAL INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURES AND ECONOMIC PROSPECTS IN THE FORMER USSR

The value of output, employment, and capital stock for each industrial sector for each oblast-level spatial unit in the former USSR, as well as differences in regional industrial structures are presented on the basis of a unique set of unpublished Goskomstat data. Particular emphasis is placed on asessing the regions relative raw materials endowments, especially with respect to energy resources, and on the degree of diversification, or lack of same, within their industrial structures. The extremely uneven distribution of industrial capacity is examined in light of its role in determining the near- and longer-term economic prospects for the various republics and regions.

Prospects for Oil and Gas Development in Russia's Sakhalin Oblast

This paper examines the oil and gas industry of Sakhalin Oblast and its offshore areas, as well as the status of major investment projects. Sakhalin is the site of two of Russias largest oil development projects with Western companies, both envisaged as major multibillion-dollar ventures. Both projects are described in detail, and remain contingent upon enactment in Russias parliament of key pieces of oil legislation, most importantly a law on production sharing. The paper argues that even if such changes in Russias legal and fiscal environment are forthcoming, the profitability of these projects remains uncertain, with actual development far from assured. 1 map, 2 tables, 11 references.

Resource Rent from the Oil and Gas Sector and the Russian Economy

Three specialists on Russias oil and gas sector examine the process whereby resource rent has been extracted from oil and gas production and distributed within the Soviet (and later Russian) econo...

Developments in Russian Crude Oil Production in 2000

A Western specialist on the energy industries of the former USSR examines trends in the production of oil in the Russian Federation in 2000 and assesses developments that will affect the sectors future performance. In addition to surveying national and regional production trends, the paper examines the continuing evolution of the industrys organizational structure, the dynamics of the reserve base, foreign investment activity, pricing policy and taxation regime, legislation, and the status of production-sharing agreements. A concluding section assesses Russian government plans for exploration and production to the year 2020.

The Russian Natural Gas Industry in the Mid-1990s

Russias natural gas industry has been enormously successful over the past quarter century (gas production increased nearly eightfold between 1970 and 1990 and exports outside the territory of the former USSR increased by 33 times), an outward success that appears to have carried over into the difficult transition period of the last five years; output has remained almost stable despite unprecedented declines elsewhere in the economy. Still, in recent years, with the overall economic and political transformation, the situation has become far more unsettled for the industry. This paper identifies and analyzes emerging new forces associated with the economic transition and assesses their likely impact upon the natural gas sector in terms of production trends and related developments in demand (both in terms of internal consumption and exports). 6 tables, 3 figures, 41 references.

The Oil Industry in the Southern-Tier Former Soviet Republics

An American specialist on the energy industries of the former Soviet Union examines developments in petroleum extraction along its southern margin. Particular attention is devoted to the situation in those countries fronting on the Caspian Basin—Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan (Uzbekistan also is included). Coverage focuses on trends in production during the 1980s and 1990s, the emergence and decline of output at various fields, new plans for development involving Western capital, and strategies for transporting crude oil to Western markets, given the appearance of 15 separate republics in the once-monolithic economic space of the USSR. 3 tables, 31 references.

REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION'S EXPORT EARNINGS OUTSIDE THE FORMER SOVIET UNION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR REGIONAL ECONOMIC AUTONOMY

The distribution of foreign export earnings by area of origin is analyzed for the Russian Federation, to convertible and non-convertible currency areas, as well as for four major commodity categories. The paper focuses on identifying, because of Russias narrow export composition, oblast-level units (and commodities) that contribute disproportionately to the Federations overall convertible currency earnings. It then explores the implications of the extremely uneven spatial districution of such earnings for the Russian governments efforts to devise a workable formula for distributing export revenues between the “Center” and the localities.

THE ALUMINUM INDUSTRY IN THE FORMER USSR IN 1992

This paper reviews recent developments in the aluminum industry in the former USSR based on new sources of information not previously available. It examines a number of factors traditionally affecting the industrys performance (e.g., heavy reliance on raw material imports, yet abundant hydropower), as well as the current conditions permitting its continued functioning despite the disintegration of the former Union into independent republics. It also surveys the past role of the former USSR as a major world aluminum producer, before assessing the impact of exports from the former Union on world aluminum markets.

Distribution of Refined Petroleum Products in Russia

A Western specialist on Russias oil and gas industries, together with two Russian analysts, examines the development of the distribution system for refined petroleum products in post-Soviet Russia. Such “downstream” activities, oriented largely toward the domestic market, are an increasingly important component of the growth strategies of Russias vertically integrated oil companies, in attempting to upgrade their refined-products distribution capacity and extend market share beyond existing service areas. Coverage also extends to actions of regional administrations and trading companies in a “virtual” economy characterized by arrears, offsets, and barter. Specific examples are derived from Novosibirsk Oblast in 1998—a typical Russian region. Journal of Economic Literature. Classification Numbers: L22, L71, Q41. 3 figures, 2 tables, 34 references: