Replies to post #170456 on Tornado Alley (PROG)

[SilverSurfer]

arizona1, hypothetical speculation is all I can offer but.....

Do you think we'll still be using oil as our main energy source 100 years from now?

I would guess no, but more importantly, what will hap in the next few decades? The world, much less the U.S., is not going to come to a screeching halt so how can we accomplish economic needs with the best energy solutions in the face of demand from an exploding population, billions of whom are expecting a more consumptive lifestyle?

Do you believe we're at peak oil right now?

NO, but have seen the end of "cheap" oil - there is plenty of oil left it is just more expensive. The main reasons we are seeing these high price spikes are political and a function of currency dilution and highly levereged speculation swings.

Do you think we should put more of our resources into developing alternatives?

When YOU say "our" you mean Gov so I say NO - Get Government out of the business of picking winners and losers. Natural Gas has much more potential than battery or solar for example.....

What do you think holds the most promise as the "energy of the future"?

Effeciency is the solution short term and longer term and that is where the greatest technological advances will be seen. imho

For now let's burn up the "foreign oil" we will need North American energy in the near future - twenty years...

[StephanieVanbryce]

Despite Negative Hype, Green Energy Revenues Rapidly Expanding

Juan Cole 03/16/2012

Solar, wind and biofuels [ http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/clean-edge-246b-market-for-solar-wind-biofuels-in-2011/ ] saw global revenue expand by 31% in 2011. With all the negative hype put out by Big Oil and its acolytes, you’d have thought the green energy market had crashed rather than growing by a third.

But investment in green energy rose only 5% over the year, which tells me that somebody is making a lot of money and others are losing out. Green Tech Media reports,

“…costs of solar panels fell by more than 40 percent last year, while installations grew by 69 percent, yielding a 29-percent increase in solar market revenues last year, Clean Edge reported.”

In the US, solar installations more than doubled, [ http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/solar-industry-more-than-doubles-capacity/2012/03/14/gIQARjr0CS_story.html ] with 1.8 gigawatts in capacity added. That is roughly like two small nuclear plants.

There are indications that solar photovoltaic cells will will fall rapidly in price because of technological breakthroughs. [ http://www.technologyreview.com/energy/39887/?p1=A2 ] Even with relatively low natural gas prices, the likelihood is that over the next decade the renewables will be decisively less expensive than hydrocarbons and the main obstacles will be an old 20th century energy infrastructure built for coal, gas and oil.

Wind power turbines were also put in at record rates [ http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/world-wind-power-climbs-to-new-record-in-2011/ ] throughout the world in 2011, with China leading the way. By 2020, China will have large numbers of mega-wind installations, generating 148 gigawatts of power.

The US is falling behind on wind installations. It only installed 6,800 megawatts worth in 2011. Altogether, wind now generates enough power to meet electricity demand in 10 million US homes. If there are roughly 60 million US households, that would mean we only have 50 million to go!

There are lots of growing pains in this industry. Many startups will fail or be absorbed. An old electricity grid is often an obstacle. Battery power and life is still too limited. But we should be suspicious of the negative tone of a lot of press and political comment on renewable energy, since any business that expands revenue by a third in one year is anything but a basket case.

http://www.juancole.com/2012/03/despite-negative-hype-green-energy-revenues-rapidly-expanding.html

[SilverSurfer]

The US Is Sitting On A 200-Year Supply Of Oil

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/us-200-year-supply-oil-2012-3#ixzz1peGmZcLz

[SilverSurfer]

More failure >


“Evergreen Solar Inc. said it has failed to find a buyer for its Devens, Mass., plant and plans to walk away from the facility, which was launched with some $50 million in state aid,”
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/failed-green-tech-company-abandons-450m-plant/

Wait - success !!

“We require taxpayers to subsidize the production of renewable energy, and now we want ratepayers to pay renewable energy companies when they lose money?” asked Todd Myers, director of the Center for the Environment of the Washington Policy Center.

“That‘s a ridiculous system that keeps piling more and more money into a system that’s unsustainable,” Myers said.


http://www.theblaze.com/stories/govt-subsidized-wind-farms-told-not-to-produce-energy/

Proposed UN Environmental Constitution For The World Would Establish An Incredibly Repressive System Of Global Governance

http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/proposed-un-environmental-constitution-for-the-world-would-establish-an-incredibly-repressive-system-of-global-governance