English

Noun

petrostate ‎(plural petrostates)

1. A state whose wealth stems from the sale of oil.
   • 1997, Fernando Coronil, The magical state: nature, money, and modernity in Venezuela

     Under subsequent democratic regimes, as we shall see, some of these features of the petrostate were to change, while others were intensified.

   • 2006, Donald S Rothchild, Edmond Joseph Keller, Africa-US Relations: Strategic Encounters

     The petrostate relies on oil as its fiscal foundation, rather than on the taxes paid by the citizens...

   • 2009, Andrew Nikiforuk, Tar Sands: Dirty Oil and the Future of a Continent

     A couple of years ago, while most Canadians were out shovelling the sidewalk or sipping a coffee at Tim Hortons, the nation quietly became a petrostate.