There is no peak oil problem! Turns out, the only problem is a temporary lack of refining capacity that might not get fixed until after 2006-2007. Well, what a relief.
Oddly I've been hearing this explanation a lot all of a sudden. Forunately, I'm not paranoid. If I was, I might think someone made it up, you know, a sort of party line, "let's keep everyone calm" sorta thing. :)
On a more cheery note, am I the last person to hear of General Atomics? It's a "private company" but it gives the impression of being so government funded that it IS the government. Not that I'm complaining. They are doing very cool stuff - Maglev trains (I had no idea the USA maintained a program!) and fusion research (some organized on an international basis). Very big budget, as advanced as technogy gets anywhere.
ga.com
The idea they have an "inherently safe" nuclear reactor may invoke skepticism from those who recall the 1950's promise of energy too cheap to meter; but their page on their reactor also says this:
"In 1999, the U.S. imported 58% of its crude oil and 37% of its total energy supply, and burning fossil fuels in the U.S. resulted in the emission of 11.3 million metric tons of sulfur dioxide, 4.9 million metric tons of nitrogen oxide, and an astounding 1510 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. It is clear that a new energy policy must address these environmental, economic, and energy-security concerns. With recent technological advances, a strong case can be made to include nuclear energy as a major component of a 21st-century energy policy.
The GT-MHR combines a meltdown-proof reactor and advanced gas turbine technology in a power plant with a quantum improvement in thermal efficiency. . . approaching 50%. This efficiency makes possible much lower power costs, without the environmental degradation and resource depletion of burning fossil fuels"
Well, that focuses more on global warming than the much more immediate problem of peak, but they spent an extraordinary amount of hundreds (thousands?) of millions of dollars to design those things; which I can't imagine they would do without some foreshadowing of a crisis in mind. Which is great.
It suggests the worst part of Peak Oil -- that somehow everyone in the entire world accidentally forgot about it, except maybe for a few powermad Republicans hellbent on apocalyse -- is not true.
Man, I never thought I would get happy to see pictures of nuke anything (that wasn't propelling a personal starship).
- Charles
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June 13, 2005
news.yahoo.com
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries signaled it was ready to hike its production ceiling by half a million barrels per day at its meeting Wednesday.
But the cartel acknowledged the move would likely not raise actual output because of a lack of spare production capacity as well as a shortage of refineries to run the crude.
"We are prepared to raise the ceiling," Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said in Vienna ahead of the Wednesday meeting. "But where are the customers?
"You know and I know that what is driving the price is not supply. It's the lack of refining capacity worldwide." |
