Useful links

http://www.urpe.org/ec/Iran_Crisis.htm
Professor O'Donnell actually speaks about Iran and oil on almost every one of these!

Some interesting articles provided at the bottom of the previous website:
http://www.nodo50.org/cubasigloXXI/congreso06/conf3_nayeri.pdf
http://www.campaigniran.org/casmii/index.php?q=node/6106
http://www.zcommunications.org/irans-dilemma-with-obama-of-new-hopes-and-old-dangers-by-faramarz-farbod
http://www.urpe.org/ec/Iran/ElectionsGhorashi09.html

There are way too many good article to post. If you scroll down the Professor has around 5 himself. Very resourceful!

Resource: The Political Economy of Oil in the U.S.‐Iran Crisis: U.S. globalized oil interests vs. Iranian regional interests

Notes: The Political Economy of Oil in the US-Iran Crisis: US globalized oil interests vs. Iranian regional interests

Resource: EIA

http://www.eia.gov/countries/cab.cfm?fips=IR

The EIA provides a current energy production profile on every country in the world.

Resource: BBC Iran Timeline

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/806268.stm

 The BBC provides a comprehensive timeline of Iran 

Resource: NIOC website

http://www.nioc.ir/portal/Home/Default.aspx?CategoryID=f398bd54-e170-44e9-a841-710c6c92b3a0&TabNo=1

The National Iranian Oil Company website

Resource: History of Oil & Gas in Iran

http://www.petropars.com/tabid/306/Default.aspx

This site provides a brief overview of the history of oil and gas in Iran from the first concession granted to D'Arcy all the way through the present. Although brief, it provides the necessary information to highlight major points/events in the history of oil in Iran.

Resource: Iranian Oil Weapon

The Iranian Oil Weapon by Stuart Staniford comes from a general blog about energy called the Oil Drum.

Official outline Edit and add more details for your section

I.                   The discovery of oil in Iran

Powerpoint and papers

Hey guys hope your research is going well,

chapter 33 & 34 Yergin notes attached

Chapter 33: The Second Shock and the Great Panic

Congress grills big oil on subsidies

Yergin Chapter Notes: 30-32

Chapter 30: Bidding for our life

I dont know you were also going to write about OPEC. I thought we were still going to keep the Concise History of MENA while i will focus on OPEC and its global effects which will still reflect the main topic. Now that i know we are all writing about OPEC with focus on Iran, i will limit my time frame from 1960 to 1978 as you suggested, but Iran role will still overlap with the questions i seek to address. Iran dont have unique role in OPEC accept it strong stand on further increases in oil price which to some extent was at odds with Saudi Arabia own stand.

a couple of resources

I've been doing some basic research to get a feel for the modern history of Iran and came across this - it's helpful in briefly summarizing significant periods of Iranian oil history:

http://www.petropars.com/tabid/306/Default.aspx

Furthermore, check out the BBC timeline - also gives a good background on just general events:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/806268.stm

After thinking more on the topic after our discussion, i would want my part of the research project in this format. I realise that if i limit my self to Iran on OPEC and oil price, the research would be too narrow, besides it would not reflect the topic " Concise History of the MENA Region".

1. The effects of the OPEC formation and OECD strategies; How did it impact the Geo-political and economic development of the North and South in global politics?

a. Did OPEC achieved it goals as a cartel organization or did it drifted as a result of Western influence on some of its members?

b. what effect did OPEC have on economic and political development of both North and South since it inception?

c. Has OPEC outlive its usefulness in determing oil price in the global markets or is still useful.

d. Where OECD strategies effective enough to counter OPEC goals of high oil prices? If effective to what extent, did it achieved it ultimate goal of stopping and decreasing high oil prices in the global market or preventing third world countries nationalism in the oil industry.

e. Did the OECD countires adopt a more peaceful or militarized strategies to counter OPEC goals? If more peaceful startegies were adopted, what would have happen if they have adopted more militarized strategies?

Was OPEC damaging or how did affect America hegemonic power in the region or was the formation of OPEC shock to americn political leaders? If a shock, how do they handle it?

This are the questions, i seek to address in this important group project work of " Concise History of the MENA region. I would use Yergin's Book " The Prize", resources provided in the course and other relevant resources to the project.

Anthony and Andrea, i would appreciate your inputs. Any resources that you think migh be useful in this group project work.

Your corperation is needed

Our definite outline (work-in-progress)

So we've decided to focus our attention on the geopolitical history of oil in Iran and how this has shaped it's current geostrategy. Let's get a new outline up here and get this presentation ready to roll. I'm going to make this brief because I have to get started on my 15 page research paper for another class, and I'm getting overwhelmed in my readings and balancing out work. We only briefly talked about this, so if I get your “role” wrong just fix it : ) you can edit my post just comment on what changes you made so we all know.
I took some ideas from our first post on the blog.

Notes on Yergin's chpt. 26

The growing surplus of oil and dominance in the market of the Soviets in the late 50’s, became a signal of some probable underlying motives for at some points selling oil significantly cheaper than ME oil. Two examples being: their desire for the dollar, of which they’d use to purchase industrial machinery and agricultural necessities; and second the fact they didn’t have much else to offer the West commercially. “In these Cold War years, many in the West believed that the intensifying Soviet petroleum campaign represented not only a commercial venture, but also a political assault, the purpose of which was to create dependence in Western Europe, weaken the unity of NATO, and subvert Western oil position in the Middle East.” (Yergin 2009, pg. 501)

Direction of Project

• Where was oil 1st found in ME
• who was involved
• timeline
• First international companies in region
• oil in WWI and WWII in a ME context
• advent of OPEC and future implications of oil for ME

Feel free to edit/make changes to the basic outline! 

Notes: Chapter 29 and Chapter 7

I have just a really brief outline by page number - its more of a reference guide, I'll put some more detailed notes up for the future chapters

Also - Chapter 7 is a good description of the beginning of oil in the ME (specifically Iran) I will post that below the required class reading notes

Chapter 21: The Oil Weapon – outline and brief notes

·         Pg. 570: Start of Yom Kippur War/October War in 1973

o   “new weapon” = oil embargo

o   “the embargo, like the war…came as a surprise and a shock”

o   “by 1973, oil had become the lifeblood of the world’s industrial economies, and it was being pumped and circulated with very little to spare” 

Notes on Yergin's chpt. 24, "The Suez Crisis"

Construction of the Suez Canal started in 1859, and was completed in 1869 powered by the Suez Canal Company. It was designed by Ferdinand de Lesseps a French "diplomat, entrepreneur, and promoter". (Yergin 2009, pg. 461) The canal connected the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea, making it of enormous importance and concern to the ruling hegemonic powers; especially the British, who could travel to India in a remarkably quicker journey, until India gained independence in 1948. Which prompted the new apparent motive for British immediate strategic security means: oil transportation. The strategic advantage of avoiding the journey across the Cape of Good Hope was obviously imperative. In addition the British were accumulating a respectable amount of money from tolls payed to the Canal Co.

Notes on a chapter from: Arabs, Oil and History

These are some notes I took on a chapter from a book I recently got from the library called Arabs, Oil and History, The Story of the Middle East, by Kermit Roosevelt. The notes are taken directly from chapter four which is entitled: Buried Treasure (pgs 25-33)

**A quick note: this book was published in 1949 so the information should be read with consideration of the era in which it was written, I tried to only include general history info but there's some that talks about "today," which of course, is referring to 1949.