ABSTRACT
This chapter describes some of the problems of extending the oil-producer cooperation beyond the organizational borders of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The analysis of non-OPEC behavior showed the performance of both cooperative and noncooperative behavior among the non-OPEC producers that had stated their intention to cooperate. The non-OPEC producers can be categorized according to their production. The two largest non-OPEC producers, Russia and the United States, are both large consumers. The Chinese case is exactly opposite the development in Russia. China has become a net importer due to a strong increase in oil consumption during the last decade. The chapter compares the cooperative and noncooperative non-OPEC producers' production growth rate from 1985 until 1987. It considers some characteristics of some of the non-OPEC producers. The chapter provides a discussion on some general problems of cooperation between an organization like OPEC and individual countries like the non-OPEC producers.
