Peak oil requires new thinking for a new age

In an economy where fossil fuels are in decline and renewable and nuclear energy sources are assuming increasingly dominant roles, electricity will become increasingly important as an end-use energy source. This implies that as fossil fuels deplete, the basis of our economy will shift from a predominantly chemical to a mostly electrical base.

This would appear inevitable, yet the implications are not at first easy to see. In an energy economy in which primary energy is in the form of electricity, the critical consideration becomes, how do we convert bulk electricity from a wind turbine, nuclear reactor or wave generator, into a form that we can use to fuel our cars, heat our homes and power our factories?

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