Energy security and competition over energy resources in Iran and Caucasus region

Shahrouz Abolhosseini; Almas Heshmati; Masoomeh Rashidghalam; Shahrouz Abolhosseini; Almas Heshmati; Masoomeh Rashidghalam

doi:10.3934/energy.2017.2.224

AIMS Energy

2017, Volume 5, Issue 2: 224-238. doi: 10.3934/energy.2017.2.224

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Research article Topical Sections

Energy security and competition over energy resources in Iran and Caucasus region

1.
National Iranian Oil Company, International Affairs, Petroleum University of Technology, Teheran, Iran
2.
Sogang University, Seoul, Korea
3.
University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran

Received: 13 January 2017 Accepted: 28 February 2017 Published: 08 March 2017

Energy security as a dominant factor in international stability is of great importance for major economies. The global energy market with its current level of supply and demand relies on energy sources in the Middle East, Caucasus, Central Asia and Russia. After the Fukushima disaster nuclear powers in Europe view renewable energy sources as a serious alternative. Europe’s energy vulnerability has deteriorated due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. However, renewable energy sources are not large enough to replace nuclear power completely. This trend will continue with climbing demand especially in the natural gas sector as clean energy. In this research, Caucasus and Iran are considered the main sources and routes for energy transmission to the global market, including Europe. Caucasus plays a key role in bridging Europe and Asia. Also, Iran is an alternative for energy transmission to Europe after lifted sanctions. As part of the European active supply diversification policy Iran has capacity to reduce Europe’s energy dependency on Russia. However, changes in US new administration America First Policy is harmful for the EUs energy security. Caucasus aims to catch a large share of the European energy market since the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline has started operations and Iran is also trying to expand its market to become a sustainable source of energy for major consumers. Therefore, Iran and Caucasus are considered reliable energy suppliers for Europe. In this regard, we analyze the best motivation for changing the direction new suppliers’ energy policies towards Europe and suggest alternative solutions to compete with rival countries in order to enhance energy security.
- energy resources,
- energy security,
- oil and gas,
- Caucasus,
- Iran
Citation: Shahrouz Abolhosseini, Almas Heshmati, Masoomeh Rashidghalam. Energy security and competition over energy resources in Iran and Caucasus region[J]. AIMS Energy, 2017, 5(2): 224-238. doi: 10.3934/energy.2017.2.224

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Abstract

Energy security as a dominant factor in international stability is of great importance for major economies. The global energy market with its current level of supply and demand relies on energy sources in the Middle East, Caucasus, Central Asia and Russia. After the Fukushima disaster nuclear powers in Europe view renewable energy sources as a serious alternative. Europe’s energy vulnerability has deteriorated due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. However, renewable energy sources are not large enough to replace nuclear power completely. This trend will continue with climbing demand especially in the natural gas sector as clean energy. In this research, Caucasus and Iran are considered the main sources and routes for energy transmission to the global market, including Europe. Caucasus plays a key role in bridging Europe and Asia. Also, Iran is an alternative for energy transmission to Europe after lifted sanctions. As part of the European active supply diversification policy Iran has capacity to reduce Europe’s energy dependency on Russia. However, changes in US new administration America First Policy is harmful for the EUs energy security. Caucasus aims to catch a large share of the European energy market since the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline has started operations and Iran is also trying to expand its market to become a sustainable source of energy for major consumers. Therefore, Iran and Caucasus are considered reliable energy suppliers for Europe. In this regard, we analyze the best motivation for changing the direction new suppliers’ energy policies towards Europe and suggest alternative solutions to compete with rival countries in order to enhance energy security.

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