Oil and Gas Companies’ Safety Positions on Foreign Market: New Challengers and Evaluating Criterias

Key point of the research is that safety position of oil and gas companies on foreign markets can be ensured via complex analysis of factors influencing modern energy sector and presented in both economic and institutional dimensions. New methodological approach was developed. Key aim of a new approach is to assess safety level for positioning of companies on foreign markets in view of prospects for sustainable intensification of export, geological prospecting work, production, refining and marketing of oil and gas and with respect to the economic stability of hosting country and its political reliability. Within the framework of this approach, an integral index of safety positions of Russian oil and gas companies on foreign markets is proposed, which gives a comprehensive idea of the favorable situation in the energy market and, thus, simplifies management decisions in the field of long-term positioning of domestic enterprises in the markets of host states. The index of safety positions of Russian oil and gas companies on foreign markets on group of the countries representing potential interest for the domestic companies is calculated. The highest index value was assigned in China, the Netherlands, Germany and India. Kazakhstan, Bulgaria and Serbia were regarded as countries with average index value; Iraq and Nigeria belong to countries with low index value. The suggested index can be treated as a background for selecting the model of Russian oil and gas companies’ strategy and performances on hosting markets. Thus, when choosing an effective model of behavior of Russian oil and gas companies, the Chinese vector of cooperation should be based on partnership, not on competition. From the point of view of long-term positioning of Russian oil and gas companies, the Indian market is attractive, which is characterized by high volumes of imports of gas, oil and refined products, intensive GDP growth.