Will energy scarcity cause a severe world depression?

As oil becomes scarcer and more expensive the world will have to adapt to new energy sources. A common fear is that this adaption will not be fast enough, sending our increasingly energy thirsty world into an economic downward spiral. Skeptics suggest that there is no shortage of raw energy sources and that the problem is fundamentally economic, and that the degree to which the problem exists is proportional to the economic incentive to solve it.

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Is peak oil imminent?

Experts and Influencers

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Agree

Experts In Energy

Matthew Simmons CEO and Oil Analyst

Mostly Agree

As far as I know, there is not a single contingency plan in place or currently being written by any of the think tanks of the world that sets out a model illustrating how the world can continue to function smoothly once it is clear that Saudi Arabian oil has peaked. In a nutshell, it is this total lack of any "alternative scenario thinking" that makes this unavoidable event so alarming.

The Crisis Pitch

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21 Jun 2005 Source

Experts In Law

Matt Savinar Lawyer

Agree

... The so called "alternatives" to oil are actually "derivatives" of oil... Without an affordable supply of oil coupled with healthy and robust financial markets to capitalize the transition [to energy alternative to oil], a non-chaotic adaptation phase is unlikely as the raw materials and investment capital necessary to fuel such a large-scale transition will have evaporated.

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01 Jan 2008 Source

Sub-Arguments Of This Expert:
Is peak oil imminent?
Agree

Disagree

Experts In Physics

Joseph Romm Physicist, Environmentalist, Writer

Mostly Disagree

It would be straightforward to build CSP (Concentrated Solar Panel) systems at whatever rate industry and governments needed, ultimately 50 to 100 gigawatts a year growth or more.

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14 Apr 2008 Source

Steven Chu US Energy Secretary, Nobel Laureate in Physics

Disagree

I deeply believe that in my heart and soul, that science, when put to the task, can and will I think give us much better energy solutions. [For example,] an early crisis Europe faced at the beginning of the transition from the 19th to the 20th century was [that] the constant agriculture on pieces of land depleted the soils..... And so what happened was, German chemists invented a way to synthesize ammonia, which became the basis of nitrogen fertilizer [and] got a Nobel Prize for that.

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09 Mar 2009 Source

Neutral

Experts In Energy

International Energy Agency (IAE)

Neutral

I would be very surprised if the oil productions would effortlessly increase during the next 20 to 25 years to meet, lets say, 120 mb a day without any problems. Even if the potential should be there, we will not get this oil to the markets. The conclusion is that we have to be prepared to see very turbulent, tight and high prices oil markets - this will not be good for the economy.

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02 May 2008 Source

Sub-Arguments Of This Expert:
Is peak oil imminent?
Mostly Agree

Robert Hirsch Energy Policy Analyst

Neutral

The era of plentiful, low-cost petroleum is approaching an end. The good news is that commercially viable mitigation options are ready for implementation. The bad news is that unless mitigation is orchestrated on a timely basis, the economic damage to the world economy will be dire and long-lasting.

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01 Oct 2005 Source

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