Close Encounters: Russian Policymaking and International Oil Companies

This chapter differs from several of the others in this volume — and complements the examination of external energy relations in the next chapter — in that it deals with Russia’s encounter with globalization in a domestic context, in the form of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Russian petroleum sector.1 Through FDI, Russia has encountered an important aspect of globalization — multinational corporations. Foreign companies in turn have experienced important aspects of the Russian economy and society: high profits, legal unpredictability and opaque decisionmaking. Because these encounters take place on Russian soil, with major economic interests at stake both for Russian and foreign parties, and with extensive media coverage, they are among the most critical globalization moments for Russia.