Peak Oil News

I wanted to be a geologist once — even claimed it as my major at the University of Georgia. Then they made me take calculus. I decided on a degree in English not too long thereafter, thinking I’d read books about oil and rocks instead. Research for last week’s column on the oil discovery in the Gulf intrigued me, as did the responses I received. Like addicts worrying about where our next fix will come from, we all seem to have an opinion on the future of oil. Back in the 1950s geologist Marion King Hubbert posited that crude oil was a finite resource and went on to illustrate when the U.S. and world would reach a peak in production by using a bell curve. The curve rises from left to right, as new oil is discovered and infrastructure is put in place to extract it. The curve goes back down ...

The world needs to spend $1tn a year in alternative fuels, starting 20 years before the peak in conventional oil production, in order to mitigate fuel shortages, a US Energy Department study showed. Production peaks in Texas, the UK and Norway were examined as part of two studies for the department that advised on "crash course" efforts to cope with an eventual shortage of gasoline and other liquid fuels. The study, led by Robert Hirsch, didn’t predict when world production will peak, though Hirsch told reporters his guess is "within the next five to 10 years." » Source: Gulf Times "Conventional oil will peak at some point," Hirsch said at the Oil and Money Conference in London. To lessen the impact, "we have to start a long time before the peak or we’ll have severe liquid fuels shortages worldwide." Conventional oil production peaked ...

Global economic growth is at risk of peaking because of high oil prices and rising protectionist sentiment, warned Rodrigo de Rato, the International Monetary Fund’s managing director, on Tuesday. “The global growth cycle may be close to its peak,” Mr de Rato said in his opening statement at the joint IMF and World Bank plenary session in Singapore. “The best hope for continued high growth lies in further increases to international trade. If this does not happen, the outlook is less encouraging.” » Source: Financial Times Mr de Rato also warned of a continued risk that current account imbalances will unwind in a disorderly way. “There is a growing risk that protectionist sentiment will overwhelm good sense. If it does, all of the other risks loom larger.” The IMF chief urged developed and emerging countries to renew their commitment to multilateralism and resume the ...

In assessing future demand for transport, the Department uses assumptions of future oil prices which are established, and periodically updated, by the DTI. In the 2003 Future of Aviation White Paper, the Department's assumption was that aviation fuel prices would remain at $25 dollars per barrel in real terms (2000 prices) until 2030.[205] In the 2004 Future of Transport White Paper, the Department referred to the DTI's May 2004 projections of the price of crude oil standing at $23 a barrel (2003 prices) in 2010, and rising to almost $28 a barrel by 2020. » Source: UK House of Commons Since those White Papers were published, the price of oil has risen markedly; as of 11 July 2006 a barrel of brent crude stood at $74.16. In our first session, Transport 2000 discussed their concerns about the ...

Whereas the passage of history has recorded an increasing pace of change, such that the demand for energy has grown rapidly in parallel with the world population over the past two hundred years since the Industrial Revolution; Whereas the energy supply required by the population has come mainly from coal and petroleum, such resources having been formed but rarely in the geological past and being inevitably subject to depletion; Whereas oil provides ninety percent of transport fuel, is essential to trade, and plays a critical role in the agriculture needed to feed the expanding population; » Source: Post Carbon Institute Whereas oil is unevenly distributed on the Planet for well-understood geological reasons, with much being concentrated in five countries bordering the Persian Gulf; Whereas all the major productive provinces of the World have been identified with the help of advanced technology and growing geological knowledge, it ...

World prices of oil and gas are showing a steeply rising trend. According to Matthew Simmons, a former White House energy adviser, the price of a barrel of petroleum may rise as high as $ 200 to $ 250 in the coming years from the present price of only $ 78. Such an extreme increase in price of oil and gas would unhinge the world economy and spell ruin for large corporations. In 2005, earth’s population consumed 83 million barrels of oil per day. This number is expected to rise to about 90 million by 2010 and to 115 million by 2030. On the other hand, the historical “peak” of oil production will be reached in 5-10 years despite improvements in production technology and the expansion of oil shales and sands. The consequent shortfall will be extremely large to be bridged by the renewable energies. In the long run, even if ...

Almost everything in our modern economy is either made from oil or requires oil for its functioning or its transportation. As the price of oil begins to skyrocket, therefore, so will the price of everything else. The same happened on a smaller scale during the temporary oil crisis of the 1970s and '80s. The hardest hit will be those with debts: car payments, house mortgages, credit cards, student loans. But everyone will find that a dollar just doesn't "stretch." High prices will be combined with low wages. Even now, the news media are always claiming that the unemployment rate is low, but they fail to mention that so many "employed" people are working at low-paying jobs. It is not easy to get together the required food, clothing, and shelter when one is being paid minimum wage. » Source: countercurrents.org At first, money ...

Across the country, politicians and ordinary citizens want to lower taxes on gasoline to ease pain at the pump. This idea is tempting, but it is precisely wrong: There is no better time to raise the national gas tax of 18.4 cents per gallon than now, if done correctly. I have a plan. Each day, the world uses about 84 million barrels of oil. The United States uses one-fourth of that, yet has one-twentieth of the world's population. Using oil worsens global warming, supports oil-rich autocrats, funds terrorism and makes America more inclined to be stuck in the Persian Gulf. In fact, our oil addiction is costlier than most people know. According to the International Center for Technology Assessment, the real price of gasoline is US$5.60 to US$15.14 per gallon, when taking into account environmental, health, social and defense costs associated with protecting and using oil. » Source: ...

The world should get used to oil prices above $US60 a barrel for at least the next two years due to capacity shortages, said Claude Mandil, the executive director of the International Energy Agency. Speaking from Paris, Mr Mandil told ABC's Inside Business that increased upstream supplies were not expected until at least 2008 and refining capacity would probably not increase until 2010 or 2011. "I expect at this time, barring, of course, any unexpected event, we could again see prices which are at a more comfortable level," he said. » Source: The Sydney Morning Herald Mr Mandil declined to specify his idea of a "comfortable level" but indicated the $US40 to $US50 a barrel range could be appropriate. A statement released by the G7 finance ministers and central bank governors at the weekend encouraged investment in oil exploration, production, transportation and refinery capacity, noting that "tight and volatile energy ...

ALGERIA - Oil prices are expected to stay above $50 a barrel in coming months, but producers are watching the U.S. economy closely as the possibility of a recession there cannot be ruled out, Algeria's energy minister said on Sunday. Asked by reporters for his price outlook for coming months, Energy and Mines Minister Chakib Khelil replied: "I think prices will still remain above $50. The indications on the futures market are above $50 for the coming years." But he added: "Now everything depends on world economic growth. If there really is a recession in the U.S., at that moment demand could be affected fairly rapidly. We would find a lot of supply on the market and a lot of crude in competition." » Source: Reuters "We cannot exclude this possibility. We count a lot on the wisdom of the ...