legal regime & financial arrangement in the upstream contracts in the oil industry

the importance and the necessity of huge investments in oil section, legal and financial frameworks adjusting the relationship between great investor companies and oil countries have long been important issues. the history of oil investment from colonial period endeavors to investigate the general frameworks defining the relationship between governments receiving the investment and companies. also, it shows the evolution of upstream contracts in the last 100 years. furthermore, the study points to the fact that, unlike what is commonly assumed, the evolution of legal frameworks in oil contracts is more a product of specific objective conditions in oil fields rather than a result of political changes. moreover, general legal frameworks play a trivial role in adjusting the financial structure of the contracts.