T. Boone Pickens: we peaked last year, globally

Legendary Texas oilman and chair of BP Capital, T. Boone Pickens, holds an impromptu video question and answer session at ASPO Houston with Global Public Media's Julian Darley and other journalists. Pickens talks about the peaking of world oil production, which he says occurred in 2006. View the entire video interview at GlobalPublicMedia.com

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• peak
• oil
• business

[furturo]

The dream is over, America. Time to live in the reality of resource depletion.

In two words, We're screwed.

[Weaseldog2001]

Food prices are going to go higher.

You'd better be gardening if you can.

Manicured Suburban Grass Farms, are going to become a thing of the past.

[proaudiohd]

@velcroglove - That is why they (the oil companies) will do everything they can to prevent $7 gas. Sure someone makes stellar profits for a few months, but the following crash hurts everyone much deeper. Meaning at $100 they are opening every tap they have available. They are not sitting on 500 years of light-sweet on US soil while the world is sent into poverty. They want us to keep driving so THEY can keep making money. If they had it, they would be pumping it. They don't.

[proaudiohd]

@velcroglove - $7 gasoline would collapse the economy (again). The radius of affordable commuting would shrink and bankrupt people living in the outer suburbs. They quit buying TV's and starbucks, and the worldwide economy takes a hit. Factories lay off workers. Less people drive to work (or can afford to drive to work). The droves of unemployed can't pay their mortgages and the banks fail (again). That crushes the stock market which causese even more job losses. Oil falls to $35 (again).

[proaudiohd]

@velcroglove - If it were simple as connecting the mythical wellhead at gull island, this oil would be flowing. The desire to please stockholders is too large, the greedy investors too hungry. These are companies motivated by quarterly profit. If all they had to do is turn on the switch, it would be on. There's no incentive to let their profits sit underground while prices pass the point of demand destruction and collapse the economy. They want to feed into economic growth, not kill it.

[proaudiohd]

@velcroglove - Don't tell me what I will worship, you are wrong. OPEC decides middle eastern production but that's all. American companies are free to pump however much they desire, and at $100 there is plenty of desire. We would not see falling production if it were simple as turning up the faucet. The oil is simply not there like it used to be. Its deeper, its harder, it comes out more slowly. They wouldnt be paying to explore in deep water if there were easy 500-year fields on land.

[proaudiohd]

@velcroglove - lol we do not have 500 years of light sweet crude. we are in perpetual decline despite billions and billions being spent on exploration to find tiny pockets under 10,000 feet of water and another 30,000 feet of seabed. If that's what's left, the good stuff is gone.

[jjstoney1]

Let's see, that pesky law of thermodynamics, and we are aware of science and math. Put simple science and math to work.You find that: approx 5 billion people must die due to lack of food. Food is grown with energy. Without fossil fuel bolstering our farming the earth will not support more than perhaps1.5-2 billion people. Energy=life. Less energy will mean less life.

[MetusModus]

@furturo Then you'd better get cracking because oil will run out, we all need a plan the longer you leave it the worse it gets. USA were repeatedly asked to conform to environmental summits when they were held but USA ALWAYS stamped it's impetuous childish foot like a tddler just told to go to bed early. NO country will suffer like USA because of it's dependency. UK is not that far behind either.

[furturo]

@MetusModus There's no combination of renewables that can replace even 1/3rd of the fossil energy we use.

But that doesn't matter, we're not doing anything on a large enough scale to even approach 1/3rd.

[MetusModus]

@furturo Only if you let it. Renewable energy has been around for so long but USA never ever listens. You want some help? Germany Cuba Sweden ALL pursue renewable religiously while USA drive aimlessly around wating fuel. UK should do the same.