SECURITIZATION OF OIL AND GAS SUPPLY CHAINS: CASES OF CHINA, CANADA, AND RUSSIA

Abstract

Energy security is high on the policy-making and research agenda, but the focus of currently available analytical tools does not allow capturing the essence of the abstract and multifaceted concept. Exposing the process of constructing energy security issues – securitization – is pivotal for understanding the highly contextual nature of energy security, and it is the main purpose of this study. The study conceptualizes securitization as a policy process, explores its fundamentals, constructs a theoretical framework that reflects its peculiarities in relation to a specific referent object, and applies the framework to the analysis of securitization processes in the governance of oil and gas supply chains in three case studies – China, Canada, and Russia. The study enhances the original securitization theory by addressing major sources of its criticism through the synthesis of insights from the field of international relations and three other social science disciplines – public policy, neoinstitutionalism and strategic management. The constructed securitization framework represents a valuable tool for structured, yet flexible, analysis. Finally, the study systematizes existing knowledge on the governance of oil and gas supply chains in China, Canada, and Russia, and uncovers securitization trends in these three national contexts.