Energy and Fuel Depletion News |
“Peak Oil: IEA Inches Toward the Pessimists’ Camp” “What’s up with oil prices? Well, it’s not speculators, and there’s no relief in sight, meaning at least five more years of high prices with no easy fixes. The ugly truth? Peak oil isn’t fringe anymore—it’s going mainstream. That’s the reading from the latest oil market report from the International Energy Agency, the rich-country energy watchdog. The IEA’s latest x-ray of the oil market includes plenty of disturbing nuggets. The fact that there are no growing stockpiles of crude around the world, for example, suggests speculators aren’t behind crude’s dizzying rise this year (much to Paul Krugman’s satisfaction and Congress’ chagrin.) And while U.S. drivers fret and worry over how to pay for the Prius, the sad truth is that it doesn’t matter: By 2015, developing country oil demand will outstrip the rich world’s. They’re already in the driver’s seat: 90% of the demand growth over the next five years will come from Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America, the IEA said. But the juiciest nugget? The conservative IEA appears to be inching ever-closer to the “peak-oil” crowd. Supply simply can’t keep pace with demand—everybody with an oil well has the taps open, but there’s not much left in the keg. Oil fields are aging quicker than free-agent pitchers, and the global oil industry has to run faster just to stay in place.”
"Cries in the Dark," Wall Street Journal, June 30, 2008 “The oil shock of 1973 came and went. So did the panic after the Iranian revolution six years later, when oil prices shot to record highs. Gone, too, is the brief flurry of fear that followed Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. After each, voices in Washington that cried out for big changes in U.S. energy policy were slowly drowned out. James Schlesinger, the first U.S. energy secretary, has said for decades that when it comes to energy policy, the U.S. toggles between complacency and panic. Will it be different this time around? With oil soaring above $130 a barrel and fears spreading of a long-term supply crunch, a new cadre of energy Cassandras in Washington argues that America faces deep and potentially wrenching challenges that no amount of gas-tax holidays or rhetorical attacks on speculators and big oil producers will help fix. From the Pentagon to Capitol Hill, some often lonely voices are warning of big shocks to come if the U.S. doesn't wake up. Not all of them point to the same core problem, however. Nor do the proposed solutions dovetail neatly. But they all agree that the main challenge is to overcome the complacency without triggering the panic… “Energy Future: A Significant Period of Discomfort,” Interview with Robert Hirsch, Allianz, June 28, 2008 “6 Myths About Oil Speculators,” U.S. News & World Report, June 27, 2008 Speculators are being erroneously blamed for the run up in the price of oil. ”Fuels on the Hill,” “Oil Shock: Analyst Predicts $7 Gas, “Mass Exodus” of U.S. Cars”
Wall Street Journal, June 26, 2008 “Oil at $135? That was just the opening skirmish in the “peak oil” wars. The latest smart money? $200 oil in 2010, with gasoline at $7 a gallon. And that is going to turn Americans into car-shunning Europeans once and for all—poor Americans, at least. That’s the latest gloomy forecast from Jeff Rubin at Canadian brokerage CIBC World Markets, who just a few months ago figured $200 oil would be a thing of the distant future—like 2012. Mr. Rubin laughs off recent attempts to take the steam out of global oil markets. Saudi production promises of 200,000 barrels a day doesn’t dent the 4 million barrel-per-day decline from aging fields every year, for starters. And it will just be “gobbled up” by increasing domestic consumption in Saudi Arabia, like other oil-producing countries that subsidize fuel…”
The Problem with Big Green “Cut your fuel bills 80% or more” "Running on Empty," The Nation, April 24, 2008
“Little increase in American’s global warming worries” Gallup, April 21, 2008 http://www.gallup.com/poll/106660/Little-Increase-Americans-Global-Warming-Worries.aspx Al Gore: New Thinking on the Climate Crisis, April, 2008 http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/243 Gore is more explicit about the acceleration of global warming. While he says he is optimistic about our ability to respond, he clarifies that optimism is justified only if it leads to changed behavior. Changing light bulbs is not enough; we need major government intervention. We must make massive new investments in conservation, efficiency and renewable power; put a price on carbon, and fight worldwide poverty while promoting renewable power. “To solve the climate crisis, we must first solve the democracy crisis.” Even though awareness of global warming has increased, the sense of urgency needed to translate awareness into major government action is missing. Pew Research Center survey data: http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=303 “Are we nearing the peak of fossil fuel energy? Has twilight in the desert begun?” Presentation by Matthew Simmons, Connecticut College, April 8, 2008. http://www.simmonsco-intl.com/files/Connecticut%20College.pdf Simmons reports that UK motorists paid $9 for gasoline last fall – equivalent to $378 a barrel. (p. 31) Oil is underpriced now, and much less valuable liquids are more expensive. “Energy Efficiency in NYC: The Problem of Split Incentives” Kate Bashford, The Sallan Foundation, April 7, 2008 http://www.sallan.org/newviews/archives/2008/04/001482.php “Contractors Wanted” Wendy Fleischer, The Sallan Foundation, Feb. 5, 2008 http://www.sallan.org/newviews/archives/2008/02/001268.php On the need to support energy efficiency contractors and auditors “Global Warming: A Divide on Causes and Solutions” Pew Research Center, Jan. 24, 2007 http://people-press.org/report/303/global-warming-a-divide-on-causes-and-solutions Public views unchanged by unusual weather. While there are deep differences on how global warming is seen between Democrats and Republicans, the issue is not a high priority for members of either party.
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