Beyond petroleum

New pipelines are not the answer to the world’s energy problems

The formal opening today of the $4 billion pipeline to carry oil more than 1,000 miles from the Caspian to the Mediterranean is a triumph of Western engineering, a strategic coup in the competition with Russia for influence in its former republics and a tribute to the acumen of BP, which holds the principal stake in the international consortium.

It will take the combined resources and commitment of Western governments, big business and Japanese research to make fuel cells a reality. Their energies should be released now. The new pipeline shows what international co-operation can achieve, but this is merely a petrol station en route to energy security.
LondonTimes