Discussion of Chapter 16

A familiar problem of analysis that occurs here is that of the balance between uniqueness and generality (Smart, 1976). On the one hand, large international natural-gas projects are unusual in their nature, for the reasons that Schneider and Schulz underline: their unusually large individual size and cost, the unusual prevalence of associated long-term supply contracts and the unusual inflexibility of the infrastructure involved. On the other hand, there is a natural inclination to mine the rich vein of recent experience with international gas development for economic and political evidence applicable to a wider range of natural-resource projects. How far can we go towards demonstrating that natural-gas projects are sui generis without fatally undermining any general conclusion derived from investigating them?