Dr. Dennis J. O’Brien
John A. And Donnie Brock Chair in Energy Economics and Policy
Director, Institute for Energy Economics and Policy

Dennis O’Brien is a widely recognized leader in the international energy industry. In 1997, he was the international president of the International Association for Energy Economics, a global organization with 3,500 members in more than 60 nations. In addition, he has been advisor to the chairman, Caltex Petroleum Corp., and managing director, petroad, which assisted clients in developing and implementing strategic business visions and planning for the global energy industry.


Dr. O’Brien has held several distinguished positions throughout his career including that of chief economist and manager of the economics department of Caltex Petroleum Corporation. Prior to joining Caltex, Dr. O’Brien was the deputy assistant secretary for International Energy Security for the Department of Energy. He has also held tenured positions and served on the boards of several universities. Currently, he is an adjunct professor in the School of Petroleum Engineering, University of Regina.

Dr. O'Brien has directed a TDA funded project with KazakhOil for a feasibility study for an oil and gas information management system ($750,000 total value) and is the current director for a TDA funded feasibility study for peak gas storage in the Chiren reservoir for Bulgargaz ($552,000 total value) ENRON is a subcontactor to IEEP for this study. In 1998, he conducted a major review of gas markets in the APEC for the Asia Pacific Energy Research Center and the APEC energy ministers.

Dr. O’Brien has worked extensively on issues of privatization deregulation of the oil and gas sectors in developed and developing countries. He is currently on retainer to the Institute for Industrial Technology and Research, Taipei for work relating to the privatization and deregulation of Taiwan and Taiwan Power and Chinese Petroleum Company. He has participated in several major studies of the issues for the Energy Commission in Taiwan since 1996. He also has served as an expert for the Secretariat of Oil and Gas, India, on the deregulation of the downstream oil and gas sector in 1997-8. He developed a large database on the experience of the US, Korea, Philippines, Thailand and other countries on downstream issues of deregulation. Dr. O’Brien also served in the U S Department of Energy and was actively involved in the development of post Allocation (deregulation) strategies and policies in 1981.

Dr. O’Brien also currently serves on a Study Committee of the World Energy Council devoted to liberalization of global economies. He is the author of a 1997 article in the Harvard International Review, which argues that deregulation and privatization allow economies to more effectively participate in global markets and achieve energy security.

Dr. O'Brien has served on several international advisory boards and panels, including the International Advisory Panel of the East-West Center; the Board of Consultants of the Asia Pacific Energy Publications; Global Resources Consortia in Hong Kong; member of the board and executive committee of the US National Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation; and the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

Dr. O’Brien’s publications have focused on energy security, world and regional oil and gas markets, Asia-Pacific energy and economic growth, China, deregulation and privatization, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Mexico, and the energy policies of the U.S. His most recent article on energy security appeared in the summer 1997 Harvard International Review.

Following service in the United States Marine Corps, he completed his education at the University of Nebraska, where he was awarded both his bachelor and master of arts degrees. Dr. O’Brien was awarded his doctoral degree at the University of Missouri in 1974.

Under O’Brien’s direction, the Institute for Energy Economics and Policy focuses on the global energy industry and its relationship with national and state energy industry issues and policy. The institute provides leadership and brings together the extensive resources of the university in business, economics, and energy sciences, as well as external resources to address the key economic, political, and social policy issues related to energy. In particular, the institute focuses on important energy relationships in Central Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and their relationship with the United States and Oklahoma.

The University of Oklahoma Sarkeys Energy Center
100 East Boyd, Room 510
Norman, Oklahoma 73019-1006
Phone: 405.325.3821 Fax: 405.325.3180
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