The Global Oil Market: A spatial perspective of this complex phenomenon

Introduction

The economic health and overall welfare of nearly every country depends on oil. In a global economy, few nations could maintain an adequate standard of living without international trade. Global trade provides increased access to an enormous variety of resources and facilitates widespread distribution of goods produced in specific parts of the world to a much larger market. The global economy relies on oil-based fuels like gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel to efficiently transport resources, goods, and people. Oil also provides energy to heat homes and is a core ingredient in hundreds of products such as medicines, fertilizers, clothes, tires, and linoleum. The volume of oil traded on the global economic market far surpasses that of any other commodity.

The problem is that oil production will peak in the next few years, yet oil demand is expected to continue to rise. Alternative energy sources are being developed but have so far proved unable to match the high-energy density, portability, safety, and ease of handling that oil offers. The dependence on oil also presents environmental concerns. Therefore, the efficient use of oil is critical to allow time for alternative energies to be developed. How can we start to address this problem?

Location

Global in scope

Time to complete the lab

2 hours

Level of GIS experience

Advanced

Data used in this lab

Global country boundaries (Esri Data & Maps 2008)

Oil and gross domestic product data (Central Intelligence Agency World Factbook)

Oil pipeline locations

Geographic coordinate system: WGS 1984

Datum: WGS 1984

Projected coordinate system: World Robinson