Climate scientists and others have in the past few years issued a steady stream of analyses showing that without immediate remedial actions, a disastrous future is headed our way. But Continue Reading
The “energy cliff” is a central concept in ecological economics, and it’s based on a very simple ratio. But for me this principle was a slippery thing to grasp, and Continue Reading
We are on the precipice of a food fight among 7 billion people, and potash will be right at the center of it. If you can add 200,000 people every Continue Reading
“Peak oil demand” has become a fashionable concept among climate campaigners but the evidence suggests oil consumption is growing at the fastest rate for a decade and shows no sign Continue Reading
World Energy 2016-2050: Annual Report “Political Economist” June 2016 The purpose of this annual report is to provide an analytical framework evaluating the development of world energy supply and its Continue Reading
1. Introduction Peak Oil is the moment in time when, on a global scale, the maximum rate of oil production is reached. The moment after which oil production, by nature, Continue Reading
My years of research for I’m Right, You’re an Idiot , as well as decades of experience in public relations, have persuaded me that we humans have a fickle relationship Continue Reading
In this article I will show that ERoEI is almost totally unimportant by itself. It does not matter if ERoEI is increasing or decreasing. ERoEI provides no guidance about which Continue Reading
For seven years, the world has operated under a complete delusion that Central Banks somehow fixed the 2008 Crisis. All of the arguments claiming this defied common sense. A 5 Continue Reading
Probably you’ve heard of “peak oil,” the theoretical point at which maximum pumping of the planet’s oil resources is reached and production begins to decline for various reasons, including rising Continue Reading
The way we get electricity is about to change dramatically, as the era of ever-expanding demand for fossil fuels comes to an end—in less than a decade. That’s according to Continue Reading
The readers of “The Doomstead Diner” are very skeptical about the possibility of a rapid transition to a 100% renewable powered world. 54% of them say that it is impossible. Continue Reading
Remember peak oil theory? It was all the rage just a few years ago. Serious books were devoted to the idea that the world was running out of crude. Deep Continue Reading
The concept of the “ Seneca Cliff ” seems to have gone mainstream. Below, it is mentioned in a recent post by Dennis Coyne on “peakoilbarrell” as an obvious concept. Continue Reading
Oil production is probably close to its peak level currently. At best supply can stay the same, but is more likely to drop. Global oil demand, though, has been growing Continue Reading
Pity the poor petro-states. Once so wealthy from oil sales that they could finance wars, mega-projects, and domestic social peace simultaneously, some of them are now beset by internal strife Continue Reading
Shale oil tower The energy sector was certainly a bargain in January, but no one really knows where oil will be around Christmas. While we may have already seen the Continue Reading
According to Bernstein Research , peak oil – when oil usage is expected to begin falling globally – could arrive as soon as 2030. While this may seem unlikely with Continue Reading
In the last press review of 2015 I asked if that had been the year petroleum peaked. The question mark was not just a precaution, the uncertainty was really there. Continue Reading
The scenario above shows an Oil Shock Model with a URR of 3600 Gb and EIA data from 1970 to 2015 and the Annual Energy Outlook (AEO) 2016 early release Continue Reading
The unpleasant truth now and soon is that the ready supply of oil and gas which we almost always take for granted [the occasional price spike notwithstanding] is on its Continue Reading
This week at the annual conference in Montreal of the CFA Institute, a professional body for investors, there were some grand narratives about the future of oil. They should be Continue Reading
For a long time, a common assumption has been that the world will eventually “run out” of oil and other non-renewable resources. Instead, we seem to be running into surpluses Continue Reading
The end of the oil era has been predicted for so long that it has ceased to attract much interest. Critics rightly say it’s now difficult to know who to Continue Reading
In 2010, Molly Eagen gave herself a challenge: For 100 days the Minneapolis resident would try to live without oil . Eagen, an architecture student at the time, took the Continue Reading
Earth may only be a tiny blip on the map relative to the entire universe, but for our purposes, it’s pretty darn big. Of course, the vast majority of earth Continue Reading
Nuclear war. Climate change. Pandemics that kill tens of millions. These are the most viable threats to globally organized civilization. They’re the stuff of nightmares and blockbusters—but unlike sea monsters Continue Reading
In a Greater Middle East in which one country after another has been plunged into chaos and possible failed statehood , two rival nations, Iran and Saudi Arabia, have been Continue Reading
[T]he West’s energy security is assured to a degree that has not existed in the past. That’s good news for the American people and for the world, even if it Continue Reading
Oil rig at sunset image via shutterstock . Reproduced on Resilience.org with permission. It’s not looking good for the global fossil fuel industry. Although the world remains heavily dependent on Continue Reading
An extensive new scientific analysis published in Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Energy & Environment says that proved conventional oil reserves as detailed in industry sources are likely “overstated” by half. According Continue Reading
In just two decades, the total value of the energy being produced via fossil fuel extraction has plummeted by more than half. Now $3 trillion of debt is at risk. Continue Reading
A report commissioned on behalf of a cross-party group of British MPs authored by a former UK government advisor, the first of its kind, says that industrial civilisation is currently Continue Reading
In 1956, Shell geologist M. King Hubbert correctly predicted that oil production in the United States would reach a peak around 1970. Since his Peak Oil theory fits so well Continue Reading
A recent vacation afforded me the opportunity to read The Oracle of Oil , Mason Inman’s excellent new biography of Marion King Hubbert. I strongly recommend it. But, rather than Continue Reading
We will have to transition to a post-fossil-fuel economy eventually, either out of wisdom or chaos [1] Discussions about the future of fossil fuel production and supply have to become Continue Reading
The world will begin to wean itself off its reliance on oil starting in about 20 more years. According to Bernstein analyst Neil Beveridge, the world will hit peak oil Continue Reading
The latest EIA drilling productivity report (11th April 2016) https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/drilling/ shows US shale oil production continuing to decline in Bakken, Eagle Ford and Niobrara while the Permian has flattened out. Continue Reading
There is concern that World C+C may decline steeply after the peak, I believe those concerns are over blown. There is always the possibility that there could be a severe Continue Reading
The Oracle of Oil is the untold story of M. King Hubbert, one of the twentieth century’s top scientists. Known as “the father of peak oil,” Hubbert made bold forecasts Continue Reading
My friend and colleague Marianne Kah, the chief economist at ConocoPhillips spoke recently about the perception that energy companies would find their reserves had lost their value, since climate change Continue Reading
Lately there has been some suggestion that “Peak Oil is dead” — that because of the recent drop in demand and price for oil, we will never again see high Continue Reading
Think Progress has a post on the “peak oil demand” theory that seems to have come into vogue to replace traditional peak oil theory based on supply depletion – Peak Continue Reading
In 2014 I wrote on the arrival of peak oil. That now appears at best premature. So what did I get wrong, and what (if anything) did I get right? Continue Reading
Our current society is one based on whim. Whatever we want can be had if we have the money. Not only can we have what we want any time we Continue Reading
“What if Riyadh’s oil wealth days are numbered?” American political analyst Phil Butler asks, shedding light on what “peak oil” means for the Western economy. Saudi aggression against Yemen and Continue Reading
Our current society is one based on whim. Whatever we want can be had if we have the money. Not only can we have what we want any time we Continue Reading
One week ago, we reported that even as traders were focusing on the daily headline barrage out of OPEC members discussing whether or not they would cut production (they won’t) Continue Reading
A shift is under way that will lead to widespread adoption of EVs in the next decade. Your browser does not support the video tag. With all good technologies, there Continue Reading
A few weeks ago, energy executives were lamenting a purgatory of “lower for longer” oil prices. As an epic bust persists, the rhetoric now involves eternal torment. “People keep calling Continue Reading
