BIOMASS HUB

A paper published in the journal Energy Policy warns that the world’s capacity to meet projected future oil demand is at a tipping point.  Accordingly, there is a need to accelerate the development of alternative energy fuel resources in order to ensure energy security and reduce emissions according to research by the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at Oxford University.

The report also suggests that the current oil reserve estimates should be downgraded from between 1150-1350 billion barrels to between 850-900 billion barrels, based on recent research.

Dr Oliver Inderwildi, Head of the Low Carbon Mobility centre at the Smith School and contributor to the report, argues that the notion that biofuels could mitigate oil supply shortages and eventually replace fossil fuels is “pie in the sky.”

There is not sufficient land to cater for both food and fuel demand. Instead of relying on those silver bullet solutions, we have to make better use of the remaining resources by improving energy efficiency. Alternatives such as a hydrogen economy and electric transportation are not mature and will only play a major role in the medium to long term.

The Smith School paper also highlights that in the past, political and financial objectives have led to misreporting of oil reserves, which has led to contradictory estimates of oil reserve data available in the public domain.