Norway's oil and gas sector : how did the country avoid the resource curse?

Abstract

This essay is an effort to understand the dynamics behind a successful model of wealth distribution in one of the top oil producers in the world: Norway. The first part explains the concept of “resource curse” to describe the challenges that resource rich nations face in their economies. The next section describes the conditions in Norway since the late 1950s to make the point that efficient wealth management, savings, and distribution systems of a given country are usually based on three major initial aspects: comparatively low oil and gas production prospects in its initial phase of exploration, high level of economic and political development, and a political system that does not pressure the government to directly use the revenues obtained from natural resources to alleviate social, political, and economic problems. The third section explains the “Norwegian model,” as well as the future challenges to keep its good performance. Finally, after a few conclusions on the particularities of the Norwegian model, the essay provides a brief comparison with Mexico’s oil and gas sector to assess which general policies could be replicated in the North American country in the context of the energy reform approved in December 2013.