US Auditor: Energy Dept Should Develop Plan For Peak Oil Era

WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The U.S. Department of Energy and other federal agencies need to develop a strategy to mitigate the effects of a peak in oil production, which studies show could occur by 2040, a federal oversight body said Thursday.

While there was a great deal of uncertainty over the timing of peak oil because members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries don’t open up their crude reserves for audit, the U.S. would be one of the hardest hit by a such a peak due to the nation’s dependency on oil for transportation, according to a report issued by the Government Accountability Office.


The study was requested by members of the House Committee on Science and Technology.

The theory of peak oil, which was first put forward by American geologist M. King Hubbert, holds that oil production peaks when half of the world’s reserves are depleted. Once dismissed as a fringe theory, peak oil has gained popularity in recent years as oil prices surged.

Dow Jones Newswires