Fahad Alyahya is an Oil & Gas Analyst at KAPSARC, where he focuses on creating economic models for the energy sector and providing evidence-based analysis. He holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from King Saud University and was also a member of KAPSARC’s ingugural Graduate Development Program (GDP).
Unraveling the Black Market for Oil: The Complex Web of Phantom Trade and Its Reverberating Effects on Energy Security, Trade Balances, and Social Welfare
In the energy market, the black market1 for oil embodies the ancient parable of the blind men and the elephant. Just as the blind men each touched a different part of the elephant and experienced only a fraction of its true nature, so do policymakers perceive the black market for oil through narrow lenses. However, this market, like the imposing elephant, manifests itself in diverse and multifaceted forms that demand nuanced understanding and cannot be dismissed.
14th October 2024