Energy boss foretells future scarred by oil wars

The world’s dwindling oil and gas reserves will become the main cause of global political tension if consumers continue to “run on empty”, the head of one of Scotland’s leading energy companies warned yesterday.

Ian Marchant, chief executive of Scottish and Southern Energy, told delegates at a renewable energy conference that world oil and gas production was rapidly reaching a plateau where demand would outstrip supply.
He said: “If we carry on, oil and gas reserves will be the biggest source by far of global political tension and potential conflicts.

“If we don’t sort this out, there will be wars fought over oil. You can argue there already have been.”

His warning came in a keynote speech on the opening day of All-Energy 08, an annual showcase for Britain’s renewable energy industry in Aberdeen.

Mr Marchant said global oil consumption had soared by 30 per cent since 1990.

He explained: “In the last 15 years, globally we have been using up more oil than we have been discovering.

“Already, 20 per cent of the barrels we produce every day comes from fields over 40 years old. No field that produces more than a million barrels per day has been discovered for over 30 years. Even the United States has got to the point where it realises maybe the oil is running out.”

He added: “The days of cheap, easy oil and gas are rapidly coming to an end. We will reach a plateau in the amount of oil we can produce sustainably.

“Currently, oil demand is running at 86 million barrels a day. I can see us getting maybe 90 million barrels a day, but we have to fundamentally change how we think about oil and gas.”

Mr Marchant stressed that dwindling supplies were also an issue for the UK, with the latest forecasts predicting a 14 per cent reduction in North Sea oil production and a 7 per cent cut in gas.

“The UK’s oil is already clearly and demonstrably running out,” he said. “The debate is how we maximise the last remaining reserves. It’s a global problem and it’s a local problem.”

Scotsman