Newsletters | Request Trial | Log in | Advertise | Digital Issue   |   Search
  • Upstream
  • Midstream & Downstream
  • Gas & LNG
  • Trading & Markets
  • Corporate & Finance
  • Geopolitics
  • Podcasts
Search
Related Articles
Mideast plans big spending on gas to meet demand
The region’s gas producers are investing heavily in the fuel in order to satisfy burgeoning demand resulting from economic growth and a shift to cleaner fuels
Venezuela already making oil comeback
The government is taking important steps to revive domestic production, lift investment and benefit from the geopolitical crisis even if more needs to be done in the longer term
How Russia gains from the Hormuz supply shock
The US may be systemically stripping Russia of key geopolitical allies, but Moscow can reap rewards from the Hormuz crisis, both in the short and long term
Letter from Asia: The nuanced India-Russia oil picture
The South Asian consumer’s next move could tighten the Middle East oil market overnight
Letter from the Middle East: Aramco provides big global gas reveal
The Saudi energy leader’s announcement of first production at Jafurah and the launch of operations at the Tanajib Gas Plant marks a turning point not just for the company, but for the world’s energy landscape
LNG steps in as Brazil’s gas boom masks tight marketable supply
With marketable supply unlikely to grow significantly and limited scope for pipeline imports, Brazil is expected to continue relying on LNG to cover supply shortfalls, Ieda Gomes, senior adviser of Brazilian thinktank FGV Energia, tells Petroleum Economist
Arctic LNG 2 adds Arc7 to its shadow fleet
Having found a steady buyer in China for its sanctioned gas, the Russian project is positioned for nearly year-round operations, yet its 11-vessel ‘shadow fleet’ is still insufficient to achieve anywhere near capacity utilisation.
Letter from Saudi Arabia: Big oil meets big shovel
As Saudi Arabia pushes mining as a new pillar of its economy, Saudi Aramco is positioning itself at the intersection of hydrocarbons, minerals and industrial policy
Venezuela upends global heavy crude market
The ripple effects of US refiners switching to Venezuela grades will be felt from Canada to China and everywhere in between
Venezuela mismanaged its oil, and US shale benefitted
Chavez’s socialist reforms boosted state control but pushed knowledge and capital out of the sector, opening the way for the US shale revolution
Discoveries in frontier provinces like the Arctic are especially vulnerable to becoming stranded
Opinion
Arctic Russia Brazil Venezuela Saudi Arabia
Cleveland Jones
5 October 2021
Follow @PetroleumEcon
Forward article link
Share PDF with colleagues

Giant oil and gas discoveries may prove irrelevant

The energy transition is increasing the risk of huge discoveries becoming stranded indefinitely

The size of large new oil and gas discoveries may not be enough to guarantee development and production. The window of opportunity for such discoveries may be over, not because their underlying resource base is insufficient, but because they may not be able to be produced before the twilight of the oil age renders them uneconomic. Under normal circumstances, when discoveries involving billion barrel of oil equivalent recoverable volumes are announced, the oil and gas industry sits up and takes notice. These could indicate the birth of a new world-class oil play. However, giant discoveries, such as the Pobeda field in the Russian Arctic and the recent Kara Sea discovery by Russian oil firm Ro

Also in this section
OPEC+ caught between a crisis and a surplus
21 April 2026
After overcoming a COVID-induced demand collapse with several years of successful market management, geopolitical events have conspired to provide the pact’s biggest test to date
Letter from Iran: Nuclear miscalculation
Opinion
21 April 2026
The regime’s policy of using nuclear ambiguity as a deterrent may have failed but it has realised it has other cards to play, while its neighbours are reappraising their approach to security
Algihaz: Bridging conventional energy and the renewable transition
21 April 2026
As the global energy system undergoes a fundamental realignment, Algihaz Holdings has established itself as a critical player bridging conventional energy markets and the next generation of renewable infrastructure.
Powering collaboration: Exploring the Synergy Pavilion at the 25th WPC Energy Congress
21 April 2026
The 25th WPC Energy Congress is taking place from 11-15 October 2026 at the Riyadh Front Exhibition & Conference Center.

Share PDF with colleagues

COPYRIGHT NOTICE: PDF sharing is permitted internally for Petroleum Economist Gold Members only. Usage of this PDF is restricted by <%= If(IsLoggedIn, User.CompanyName, "")%>’s agreement with Petroleum Economist – exceeding the terms of your licence by forwarding outside of the company or placing on any external network is considered a breach of copyright. Such instances are punishable by fines of up to US$1,500 per infringement
Send

Forward article Link

Send
Sign Up For Our Newsletter
Project Data
Maps
Podcasts
Social Links
Featured Video
Home
  • About us
  • Subscribe
  • Reaching your audience
  • PE Store
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact us
  • Privacy statement
  • Cookies
  • Sitemap
All material subject to strictly enforced copyright laws © 2025 The Petroleum Economist Ltd
Cookie Settings
;

Search