The oil industry is the world’s largest commercial enterprise. Its extent is global; international issues are consistently influenced by considerations of oil production and consumption, while the international communications networks of the larger oil companies rival those of many nations. In this, the eighth edition of Oil and World Power, published in 1986, Peter Odell explains the complexities of this gigantic empire and its influence on the world. The far-reaching chapters discuss the U.S.A, the Soviet Union, O.P.E.C., Japan and the oil-consuming countries of the developing world. Evaluating the changing patterns of oil supply and the dramatic fall in oil prices in 1986, Odell proposes a number of forward-thinking conclusions surrounding the relationship between oil in global politics and economic development. This is an exceptionally interesting and relevant work, of great value to those with an interest in the oil industry, global power and international economic development.

Today’s global energy system faces two major challenges: how to secure the supply of reliable and affordable energy; and how to rapidly transform to a low-carbon, efficient and environmentally harmless energy supply. In this rigorous and illuminating book, Michael Bradshaw explores the key aspects of the current global energy dilemma and examines how it is playing out across the major regions and countries of the world. The book begins by charting the development of the current global energy system - exploring its key characteristics with a focus upon energy security and the relationship between energy, economic development and climate change. The next four chapters offer in-depth analyses of four distinct global energy dilemmas in different parts of the world: the challenge of sustaining affluence and decarbonising energy services in the high-energy economies of the developed world; the legacies of the centrally planned economy and the consequences of liberalisation in the post-socialist world; growing energy demand and emissions growth associated with the emerging regions; and finally, the quest to provide universal access to modern energy services in the developing world in a manner that is both economically and environmentally sustainable. Identifying the governance structures and policy options available to tackle the global energy dilemma, the book concludes that only an integrated approach - sensitive to regional issues - can reconcile the interests and needs of those facing differing energy challenges across the world today.