Australia: Peak oil: petrol to reach $8 a litre

PETROL could hit $8 a litre within a decade as oil production begins to dwindle and demand continues to soar, a CSIRO study to be released today says.

The study, Fuel For Thought, warns this would add up to $220 a week to the cost of running a medium-sized passenger vehicle by 2018, resulting in severe social and economic consequences.

The only way to ward off such a scenario was for “fuel and vehicle manufacturers to quickly ramp up alternative [fuel] supplies and technologies”.

The study was conducted by the Future Fuels Forum, a CSIRO-led conglomerate of state governments, manufacturers, and energy, industry and motoring groups.

Sydney Morning Herald