Shale Gas Changes Geopolitics
August 7, 2013
Less than a decade ago the international gas market was largely shaped by US imports. Today the United States is about to become a gas-exporting nation. This change is profoundly affecting global geopolitics: Shale gas exploitation is theoretically viable in many parts of the world, especially Europe and China, so major new market players may emerge. Other countries and regions, especially Russia and the Middle East, could find their positions weakened despite the financial, technical and environmental doubts surrounding the future of shale gas as a non-conventional energy source. In the energy sector, bluffing about future potential is part of the game.
From 1945 until 2010, the conventional natural gas market was structured around the import-export flow between producing regions - the former USSR and the Middle East - and major consumers: the US, Europe and China. This set-up, manifest in a network of gas pipelines and diplomatic and financial agreements, required huge investment and long-term planning, and a certain predictability. Constructing and securing global supply routes created relations of mutual dependence between nations and fed the desire to interfere, encouraged by alliances.
<- Go Back