The Bridge

Product Description
A Marginal Revolution Best Book of the YearWinner of the Shulman Book PrizeA noted expert on Russian energy argues that despite Europe’s geopolitical rivalries, natural gas and deals based on it unite Europe’s nations in mutual self-interest.Three decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the breakup of the Soviet empire, the West faces a new era of East–West tensions. Any vision of a modern Russia integrated into the world economy and aligned in peaceful partnership with a reunited Europe has abruptly vanished.Two opposing narratives vie to explain the strategic future of Europe, one geopolitical and one economic, and both center on the same resource: natural gas. In The Bridge, Thane Gustafson, an expert on Russian oil and gas, argues that the political rivalries that capture the lion’s share of media attention must be viewed alongside multiple business interests and differences in economic ideologies. With a dense network of pipelines linking Europe and Russia, natural gas serves as a bridge that unites the region through common interests.Tracking the economic and political role of natural gas through several countries?Russia and Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, and Norway?The Bridge details both its history and its likely future. As Gustafson suggests, there are reasons for optimism, but whether the “gas bridge” can ultimately survive mounting geopolitical tensions and environmental challenges remains to be seen.
Review
Tells a story that sheds new light on postwar Europe, as well as touching on many of the most important themes of that era…A richly detailed analysis written with a relaxed, lucid style…One of Gustafson’s central themes is the way that economics have often trumped politics in the European gas trade. -- Ed Crooks ?
Financial Times

Tells how ingenuity, determination and the logic of commerce overcame geopolitics in a way that illuminates not only the story of a molecule, but the recent history of a whole continent. -- Rupert Darwall ?
Wall Street Journal

What an excellent book. Imagine somebody?in this case Thane Gustafson?taking all those snippets of gas history you used to read about and turning them into a coherent, well-written narrative…Every topic should have a book like this about it. -- Tyler Cowen ?
Marginal Revolution

A readable, intelligent, even-handed historical interpretation of this modern economic relationship [between Europe and Russia]. ?
Nature

A must-read for anyone interested in energy and European or Russian political and economic history. -- John V. Bowlus ?
Energy Reporters

Sets out the genesis of Russia’s gas contract with Germany?and the West?and how it yet may be blown-up by increasing geopolitical tensions. -- Jason Corcoran ?
bne IntelliNews

Well worth a read for those wanting more insight into the mindsets of the main actors and what might influence the flow of Russian gas to Europe in the future. -- William Powell ?
Natural Gas World

Gustafson recounts the fascinating history of the rise of the Russian and European gas industries and the emergence of the Russian–European gas trade from its beginnings in the early cold war to the troubled present day…With his seminal works on the history of Soviet and Russian oil and gas, Gustafson has long established himself as the doyen in his field.
The Bridge is yet another essential addition for all those interested in the modern history of fossil fuels, Russian–European economic relations, and the intriguing mechanisms underlying the Soviet/Russian decision-making process in the area of energy. -- Jeronim Perovi? ?
Journal of Modern History

A useful exploration of Europe’s energy future…Gustafson shows how the European Union has used its legal powers…to limit the ability of the Russian energy giant Gazprom to monopolize supply for the continent. He also outlines how the changing nature of the gas industry itself has shifted the balance of power. -- Neil Bhatiya ?
Forei