  This brief article reviews a recently proposed scenario of moduli
stabilization constructed in the vicinity of a conifold locus in the complex
structure moduli space. We discuss typical features of moduli stabilization due
to the logarithmic structure of the periods over the Calabi-Yau threefold.
Integrating out heavy moduli implies exponential terms in the superpotential
very reminiscent of non-perturbative contributions. Ultimately, these terms can
lead to an alignment of axions potentially realizing large-field inflation. Our
goal is to investigate common issues appearing for moduli stabilization near
the conifold and subsequent applications to string cosmology. Even though this
setup needs to be understood as a toy model, a closer look at the validity of
the effective theories reveals characteristic obstacles, which are likely to
occur in more serious scenarios as well.
