scholarly journals Little Italy: Seeking a Niche in International Arctic Relations

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachael Lorna Johnstone ◽  
Federica Scarpa

In December 2015, The Italian Ministry for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation published Verso una strategia italiana per l‘artico (Towards an Italian Strategy for the Arctic). In this article, the authors explain and evaluate the document in light of Italy’s connections to and interests in the Arctic, the Kiruna rules for observers at the Arctic Council, and the Arctic policies of other observers. They conclude that the intended audience for Verso una strategia is the Arctic States. Therefore, the document emphasises relevant Italian scientific efforts and promotes Italy’s oil and gas industry while downplaying the rights of indigenous peoples and avoiding issues of controversy. Publication of the document as a work in progress indicates the ministry’s willingness to listen to feedback and adapt its approaches as it develops a more comprehensive and nuanced strategy.

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 50-59
Author(s):  
O. P. Trubitsina ◽  
V. N. Bashkin

The article is devoted to the consideration of geopolitical challenges for the analysis of geoenvironmental risks (GERs) in the hydrocarbon development of the Arctic territory. Geopolitical risks (GPRs), like GERs, can be transformed into opposite external environment factors of oil and gas industry facilities in the form of additional opportunities or threats, which the authors identify in detail for each type of risk. This is necessary for further development of methodological base of expert methods for GER management in the context of the implementational proposed two-stage model of the GER analysis taking to account GPR for the improvement of effectiveness making decisions to ensure optimal operation of the facility oil and gas industry and minimize the impact on the environment in the geopolitical conditions of the Arctic.The authors declare no conflict of interest


2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. G. Kazanin

The modern oil and gas industry is heavily dependent on the processes and trends driven by the accelerating digitalization of the economy. Thus, the digitalization of the oil and gas sector has become Russia’s top priority, which involves a technological and structural transformation of all production processes and stages.Aim. The presented study aims to identify the major trends and prospects of development of the Russian oil and gas sector in the context of its digitalization and formation of the digital economy.Tasks. The authors analyze the major trends in the development of the oil and gas industry at a global scale and in Russia with allowance for the prospects of accelerated exploration of the Arctic; determine the best practices of implementation of digital technologies by oil and gas companies as well as the prospects and obstacles for the subsequent transfer of digital technologies to the Russian oil and gas industry.Methods. This study uses general scientific methods, such as analysis, synthesis, and scientific generalization.Results. Arctic hydrocarbons will become increasingly important to Russia in the long term, and their exploration and production will require the implementation of innovative technologies. Priority directions for the development of many oil and gas producers will include active application of digital technologies as a whole (different types of robots that could replace people in performing complex procedures), processing and analysis of big data using artificial intelligence to optimize processes, particularly in the field of exploration and production, processing and transportation. Digitalization of the oil and gas sector is a powerful factor in the improvement of the efficiency of the Russian economy. However, Russian companies are notably lagging behind in this field of innovative development and there are problems and high risks that need to be overcome to realize its potential for business and society.Conclusions. Given the strategic importance of the oil and gas industry for Russia, its sustainable development and national security, it is recommendable to focus on the development and implementation of digital technologies. This is crucial for the digitalization of long-term projection and strategic planning, assessment of the role and place of Russia and its largest energy companies in the global market with allowance for a maximum number of different internal and external factors.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Spice

In the settler colonial context of so-called Canada, oil and gas projects are contemporary infrastructures of invasion. This article tracks how the state discourse of “critical infrastructure” naturalizes the environmental destruction wrought by the oil and gas industry while criminalizing Indigenous resistance. I review anthropological work to analyze the applicability of the concept of infrastructure to Indigenous struggles against resource extraction. Drawing on fieldwork conducted in Indigenous land defense movements against pipeline construction, I argue for an alternative approach to infrastructure that strengthens and supports the networks of human and other-than-human relations that continue to make survival possible for Indigenous peoples.


2020 ◽  
Vol 162 ◽  
pp. 01008
Author(s):  
Tatiana Chvileva

The Arctic region has a great potential in development of hydrocarbon resources and can play an important role in meeting future global energy needs. In the presented work the specific features of the Arctic hydrocarbon projects are identified. Key needs of oil and gas industry in technology development within the framework of projects of extraction of hydrocarbon resources in the Arctic are revealed. A critical analysis of technological forecasting methods is presented. Problems and prospects of their use in the conditions of the Arctic zones are established. The need for an integrated approach to forecasting the development of industrial systems of the Arctic zone is justified.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (8) ◽  
pp. 111-120
Author(s):  
A. G. KAZANIN ◽  
◽  
◽  

This paper examines the role and place of digitalization processes in improving the efficiency of public administration in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation and in the development of the oil and gas industry, which is key for the region. It is shown that the most promising for the development of the Arctic as a whole is the key principle, the essence of which boils down to the formation and development of a digital management system for the region through the formation of a “digital image” or “digital twin” of the entire Arctic socio-technological and natural system in the global world, which are a set of models describing properties and dynamics of the system depending on internal processes and external influences. The digitalization of public administration in general is the best fit for the most promising “noospheric” strategy for coordinating human activities in the Arctic. This means that the formation of a "digital image" of the region becomes, when the above approach is adopted, the main task of Arctic science and the most important task of Russian science in general.


2013 ◽  
Vol 29 (04) ◽  
pp. 199-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ming Yang ◽  
Faisal I. Khan ◽  
Leonard Lye ◽  
Heri Sulistiyono ◽  
John Dolny ◽  
...  

Because the oil and gas industry has an increasing interest in the hydrocarbon exploration and development in the Arctic regions, it becomes important to design exploration and production facilities that suit the cold and harsh operating conditions. In addition to well-established minimum class requirements for hull strengthening, winterization should be considered as a priority measure early in the design spiral for vessels operating in the Arctic environments. The development of winterization strategies is a challenging task, which requires a robust decision support approach. This article proposes a risk-based approach for the selection of winterization technologies and determination of winterization levels or requirements on a case-by-case basis. Temperature data are collected from climatology stations located in the Arctic regions. Loading scenarios are defined by statistical analysis of the temperature data to obtain probabilistic distributions for the loadings. Risk values are calculated under different loading scenarios. Based on the risk values, appropriate winterization strategies can be determined. A case study is used to demonstrate how the proposed approach can be applied to the identification of heating requirements for gangways.


1972 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 431
Author(s):  
A. R. Thompson

This is the first of three papers presented at the Tenth Annual Research Seminar on the special problems of the oil and gas industry in the Canadian Arctic. The paper examines the background to the industry's participation in the Arctic, the special problems of the Arctic environment, and the jurisdictional and administrative framework in the Yukon Territory, the Northwest Territories and the Northern offshore areas. In discussing the Arctic environ ment and legislation, the paper raises the question of whether or not there is new environmental law, and suggests that there is new environmental law taking shape which consists of demands for public participation in, and for broad range of inquiry with respect to, the decision making processes in modern society.


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