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The Caspian Sea: Potentials and Prospects
Author(s) -
Bahgat Gawdat
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
governance
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.46
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1468-0491
pISSN - 0952-1895
DOI - 10.1111/j.0952-1895.2004.00239.x
Subject(s) - investment (military) , fossil fuel , geography , politics , foreign direct investment , political science , socioeconomic status , soviet union , structural basin , development economics , economy , environmental protection , international trade , business , economics , geology , law , ecology , paleontology , biology , population , demography , sociology
The intense interest shown by the major international oil and gas companies in the Caspian Sea testifies to its promising potentials. The seven‐ hundred‐mile long Caspian Sea is located in northwest Asia. Five countries—Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan—share the Caspian basin. Shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Caspian states became open to foreign investment and the region has reemerged as a potentially significant player in the global energy policy. Indeed, the geological potential of the Caspian region as a major source of oil and gas is not in doubt. The rate of investment, however, is (and will continue to be) determined by the perceived risk in the region. This report examines three socioeconomic and political challenges to the region: ethnic conflicts, disagreements over the most cost‐effective pipeline routes, and disputes over the legal status of the Caspian.