The Impact of Lex petrolea on International Oil Contracts

With more than a century of activity in the international community, the oil and gas industry, due to its unique characteristics and actors, has developed lex petrolea. Research experts in the field of international petroleum law believe that international petroleum contracts could be considered as one of the sources of lex petrolea that has influenced the formation, development and growth of lex petrolea since the emergence of the oil industry. The question is how lex petrolea affects the international petroleum contracts. Utilizing a descriptive-analytical approach, it is concluded in this article that international petroleum standards, domestic petroleum laws and regulations, and international arbitration awards issued in the petroleum disputed cases establish that although international petroleum contracts make one of the sources of transnational petroleum law, lex petrolea along with other sources such as laws and regulations, general rules and principles of law, the customary practices and usage in the oil industry, court proceedings and arbitrations, and even petroleum legal doctrines shall affect international oil contracts. The impact determines that despite the lack of contractual expression, lex petrolea could be an implied source of governing law on the international petroleum contracts. The research also shows that lex petrolea may also lead to the development of the terms and conditions of the international petroleum contracts and can be used as the model law for these contracts.