Introduction

Sanctions are penalties or restriction placed on certain countries with the intention of limiting its economic, trade and political behaviour  to achieve compliance with international law.  Sanctions can be identified and categorized according to the body that issues them, such as the United Nations, an intergovernmental organization or either a country like the United States or United Kingdom.  This paper will seek to explain the importance of private investments in the O&G sector and the negative impact that foreign sanctions might cause to it, and it will go on to analyse three case studies, namely Iran, Russia and Venezuela, - looking at the impact of economic sanctions on the O&G sectors in those countries. Although the precise situation and challenges might differ from each of these countries, they have common similarities as well as they may face sanctions from the international community and/or unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States of America. This discussion must take into account the extraterritorial effects of The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions which are designed to penalize any third player that engages in or with a sanctioned target. This is why this paper will highlight the lessons learnt and provide recommendations based on the analysis followed by the conclusion of the said paper. This paper will focus on economic sanctions. It will not explore other types of restrictions like the ones which occurred after the coronavirus in China in 2021.