Our Global Energy Future: The 30-Year Plan & 300-Year Outlook

Transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy technologies requires a thorough understanding of energy supply and demand

Charles Botsford

Just a few years ago, the natural gas industry seemed to be in its death throes, nuclear power had modest comeback aspirations, and coal was king. Since then, environmental compliance costs have tossed coal under the bus, Fukishima dinged nuclear power, and fracking took off. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, and horizontal drilling have completely turned the natural gas industry into a runaway train. This is truly a Cinderella story of major proportions — but how long will it last? 30 years? 50 years? 100 years? What impact does this development have on our global 30-year short-term energy plan? Does it make any difference at all in the 300-year analysis? This article is a follow up analysis to a previous report on our global energy future [1]. We’ll come back to natural gas, but first let’s examine a much different story — oil.
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