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David R. Mares

Nonresident Scholar

Biography

David R. Mares, Ph.D., is nonresident scholar in Latin American energy studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. He is also a professor of political science and adjunct professor at the Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies at the University of California, San Diego. Mares was previously profesor-investigador at El Colegio de México (1980-1982), Fulbright Professor at the Universidad de Chile (1990) and visiting professor at the Diplomatic Academy in Ecuador (1995). He has been a visiting scholar at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies and the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University; a fellow at the Japan External Trade Research Organization; a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University; and held a Pew Faculty Fellowship in International Affairs. His research and teaching interests include Latin American energy politics, the political economy of drug policy, defense policy, civil-military relations and the use of photographic imagery in politics.

Mares has published many books and articles in numerous journals in the Americas and Europe. He is editor of the series “Latin America: Social Sciences and the Law” (Routledge Press) and was a member of the international advisory board of the Instituto Latinoamericano de Relaciones Civiles-Militares (Peru), as well as of the editorial board of Latin American Research Review. He has prepared reports for a number of international research institutions, and he is an associate fellow of the Inter-American Dialogue (Washington, D.C.), a fellow of the academic forum of the Summit of the Americas (Montreal, Canada) and a member of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (London) and the Council on Foreign Relations. He earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1982.

Contact at [email protected] or 713-348-4683.

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Gas Pipelines
Argentine Shale Developments — On Track?
The below-ground potential of Argentina’s shale oil and gas reserves is enticing for companies and investors — the country may have the second largest shale gas reserves and fourth largest shale oil reserves in the world. But the above-ground risk is a significant challenge for exploration and development. In this article, scholar David Mares examines the level of investment and activity in Argentine shale to shed light on the future pace of development of Argentina’s shale gas and oil potential.
David R. Mares November 1, 2014
Gas Pipelines
The Governance of Shale Gas in Argentina
Governance of the natural gas sector in Argentina is at an incipient stage. The oil and gas sector developed under a centralized management structure in which a relatively insulated government imposed policy on the sector. That structure is well-developed, even if unstable and characterized by lack of credibility. The traditional unilateral government control of the sector is not appropriate for creating a favorable investment climate for the high-cost, high-risk investments required in shale gas or for managing the protests by civil society actors that have erupted against fracking. But the creation of governance as a replacement for government control is only beginning and faces many obstacles to its full development. The evolution of governance will have a major impact on the development of the country's shale gas resources. Consequently, the full development of Argentina's shale gas potential is problematic.
David R. Mares June 1, 2014