This book provides a succinct account of what may happen to the energy sector in the former Soviet Union in the medium- to long-run under alternative scenarios for macroeconomic reform. The analyses reveal the serious damage of the oil resource base caused by the reckless exploitation practices of the past. Production of oil and coal can recover only slowly from the doldrums of the early 1990s, but the potential to expand gas output is very considerable. Energy consumption practices have been extremely wasteful in the past. The total savings potential that could be accomplished as energy...

The authors of this study emphasize the effectiveness of collectively funded public insurances as opposed to genetic information regulation within the private insurance sector. Genetics has provided tools to determine individuals' risk of future disease, which is of key interest for insurance companies in determining insurance premiums; but persons with high enough risk may remain uninsured. For this reason, genetic information has been regulated. But, regulation may not be the solution, according to the authors, and they call for the resumption of social insurance, a key element of the...

Considers problems associated with genetic information in an age of declining welfare provision, and offers direction for future policy.

This book explains why oil prices rose so spectacularly in the past and examines how they will be suppressed in the future.

State ownership in mineral industries has increased massively from the 1950's affecting the world mineral sector greatly. Originally published in 1985, this study analyses the effects this had on the international market covering topics such as state takeovers of mineral firms, price stabilisation methods, state-owned enterprises in developing countries and whether state ownership will negatively impact private multinational companies. This title will be of interest to students of environmental studies.