About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

1 J. World Energy L. & Bus. 1 (2008)

handle is hein.journals/jlowdeylw1 and id is 1 raw text is: Journal of World Energy Law & Business, 2008, Vol. 1, No. 1 Editor's Note I am delighted to launch this new journal, a product of a joint venture between the Oxford University Press and the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN). Our purpose is to provide a journal that offers a multi-disciplinary analysis of issues concerning the international energy industry. The industry is defined as upstream and downstream petroleum (oil and gas) and 'energy' sectors (ie those industries which produce, transport and disseminate electricity out of such varied conventional and non- conventional energy sources such as coal, uranium, wind and solar power) and those new technologies that emerge and become economically feasible. The journal will strive to combine academic excellence with professional relevance and a strong industry focus. We wish to appeal to the professional, corporate, governmental, non-governmental and academic communities. The purpose of the Journal of World Energy Law and Business (JWELB) is to fill the gap between the perspective and the approach of the various disciplines focusing on international energy, ie to become the principal forum for an inter-disciplinary dialogue. The understanding of the commercial and legal dimension of the energy industries has always been hampered by the boundaries academia and the culture of professions have erected around each other. I have previously stressed that leading practitioners and scholars have always been able to sharpen their analysis and application of law and con- tractual commercial transactions by a more than superficial understanding of the forces which underlie and determine the law. The overly strict separation between the profes- sional disciplines and their perspectives has not gone away but this new journal is built on the premise that a multi-disciplinary approach to the energy industries is a much better way to understand how the oil, gas and other energy industries function. Our aim is therefore to encourage an inter-disciplinary dialogue with and between our authors; that requires intelligibility across the borders of the authors' specialities. To understand the energy business and its regulatory, political and commercial chal- lenges properly, industry professionals and their advisors need to understand the legal framework in which it operates and the forms and enforcement mechanisms for the com- mercial transaction it employs. Equally, they need to understand the key drivers for the modern energy business: the market structure (which is currently undergoing a major change, with the concentration of oil and gas production and reserves in the hands of very few major producing states and the new state oil and gas companies replacing the former 'Seven Sisters'); and also the strong and persistent drive in particular Western countries towards energy efficiency, non-hydrocarbon energy sources and emission controls under the headings of both energy security and climate change. Fifteen years ago, there was full enthusiasm over the flow of Western investment into Russia and other CIS countries. That enthusiasm has gone, but we now see 'Sovereign Wealth Funds' and investment rather flowing from China, India and the major oil and gas producing countries. Similarly, the early 1990s were a time of privatisation and post-privatisation energy regulations. At present, we have rather a backlash against these © The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the AIPN. All rights reserved. doi:10. 1093/jwelb/jwn008 1

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most