| Summary: | The hereinafter called Local Content Policies ('LCP') are part of a group of development policies adopted by several countries all over the world in order to maximize the social and economic benefits that arise from certain business activities. The LCPs herein analyzed are mainly related to the oil and natural gas sector. Under a legal perspective, LCPs are a rather controversial tool, as they are not only difficult to define, but can also be materialized by means of different normative instruments. In addition, each LCP may suggest or impose different implementation measures, which may produce effects in different areas of the Law. Considering the outlined scenario, one hereby indicates that the main goal of this paper is analyze the implementation in our legal framework of LCPs successful abroad. For this purpose, this paper demonstrates that LCPs should be reinterpreted in light of the present Constitution. This is so because LCPs were created when the main school of economic development was Keynesianism, which was replaced by the current School of Rule of Law. Even though our legal framework was altered in order to conform to said evolution (by means of Constitutional Amendments and adoption of new laws), LCPs were not. Thus, this paper has identified in the Law, four elements, to which each LCP must abide in order to fit in the Rule of Law framework: (A) Benefits to Final Consumers; (B) Sustai nability; (C) Transectoreality; (D) Enhancement of the Labor Market. Then, this paper classifies the different types of LCPs studied, exemplifying each one. While indicating said different types of LCPs, three main criteria that make the legal analyses of those policies easier are indicated: (A) Channel; (B) Nature; and (C) Instrument. Following such analyses, four successful case studies have been chosen to have their implementation more comprehensively examined: the Kazakhstan Contract Agency, the Norwegian Petro Arctic Supplier Asssociation, the Australian Industry Participation Plan and the Nigerian Oil & Gas ...
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