Redstate

By Vladimir Posted in Energy | Shell Oil — Comments (0) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »

Making the point that we can't just walk away from hydrocarbons while bridging to a future full of renewables:

Shell: Crude shortfalls will boost renewables

Royal Dutch Shell said the failure of crude suppliers to keep pace with accelerating demand may prompt the expansion of renewable energy.

There's "plenty of oil in the world," Shell's Scenario Team said today on a Webcast led by Global Business Environment Vice President Jeremy Bentham. "The important moment is actually not a possible peak of oil production;" it's when demand exceeds supply, which may "come well before a peak" in output.

[snip]

Shell, based in The Hague, said in February that it plans to maintain a broad portfolio of renewable resources, with biofuels remaining an "important" alternative to conventional oil besides hydrogen, solar, wind and nuclear power. Renewables will supply about 30 percent of global primary energy by 2050, according to Shell.

The world "is certainly going to need more oil as well as more renewables and indeed many energy sources," the company said today. "The demand growth is happening so fast that it will be very difficult for energy supply to keep up. For this reason we're going to need all the energy we can get."

[snip]

Van der Veer in April said Shell's existing resources will provide 55 years of oil production at current levels, according to the Financial Times. Energy demand is expected to double between now and 2050, leading to the use of more expensive, unconventional fuel sources including Canada's oil sands, the newspaper said.

{emphasis added]