Beyond the Joint Development Agreement

This book offers a detailed legal assessment of offshore ‘joint development’ agreements (JDAs) arising from cooperative negotiations between coastal States. These agreements focus on the exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbon deposits within disputed seabed areas, overlapping continental shelf and Exclusive Economic Zones claims, or across delimited maritime boundaries.

Introducing ‘joint development’ as a framework for international agreements enabling States to collaboratively manage shared hydrocarbon resources, the book’s central theme focuses on comparative analyses of selected offshore JDAs, examined by international practitioners, officials, and academics. Through these case studies, it explores the legal complexities and practical applications of JDAs, emphasizing their role in fostering cooperation between States. It highlights the growing State practice in bilateral joint development agreements and proposes an international norm favouring such arrangements, particularly in disputed maritime areas with potential hydrocarbon deposits.

Targeted at legal scholars, policymakers, international practitioners, and academics specializing in maritime law and resource management, this book offers valuable insights into the evolving international legal framework. It serves as a guide for States seeking cooperative solutions to manage shared hydrocarbon resources in contested maritime zones.

Choi Jee-hyun is Associate Professor at the Law School, Jeju National University, Jeju City of Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, South Korea. He holds a Ph.D. in International Law from Korea University and completed both his graduate and undergraduate studies at Korea University. He served as Associate Research Fellow at the Korea Maritime Institute from 2011 to 2020.

David M. Ong is Professor of International and Environmental Law at Liverpool John Moores University. Originally from Malaysia, he is a legal academic whose research interests include the law of the sea, environmental law. international investment law, and international development finance law.