Jeff Rubin and Andrew Nikiforuk on the future of oil

Big Ideas presents Jeff Rubin and Andrew Nikiforuk on The Future of the Oil Economy. This panel discussion took place at the 2010 Globe and Mail Festival Open House. Moderator is Paul Waldie.

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[dwdeclare]

i love jeff rubin. he's the jack nicholson of economists.

[TheGreatAlexandre]

1 dislike.. must of been steven harper.

[AxnReaxn]

Energy intensive? You have to spend money to make money. Same goes for oil sands. Should we also bash entrepreneurship? FACT: The oil sands producers are self-sustaining with regards to energy input and actually sell power back to the grid.

[AxnReaxn]

The more I watch, the more outraged I become with these two. They talk about dykes "possibly" breaking, turning manure into fuel, and this Jeff says "I think" everytime he opens his mouth. And I quote, "this is where I think oil's going to be... I think oil's going to be $100 by the fourth quarter.. Now.. where we go from there is open to debate. Because it's VERY conceivable that in 2012, instead of my $200 forecast, oil is back at $40..." Essentially hes making predictions based on nothing.

[AxnReaxn]

Right away I found their points very new and interesting. I had to go back and relisten about 3 times to what Jeff was saying in opening. He talks about the implications of the high price of oil ($150-200/barrel) and says it forces people off the road. Then he says that when it's $40/barrel that the companies cannot maintain a profit and will stop producing oil. He makes good points but doesn't explain why oil would go to $200/barrel.

[AxnReaxn]

I may not have a PhD in economics but I do understand that the price of goods is driven by supply and demand. If oil goes up to $200/barrel, it's because it's still profitable for companies and citizens to buy it at such price, ie, the demand is there. Only when nobody wants oil or they overproduce it do oil prices plummet to such lows of $40/barrel. I should point out that I am a mining engineer in the Athabasca oilsands and the oil companies will still pull profits at$40/barrel.

[markajaw]

41:50 what's really sad is that high oil prices have helped BP's stock price make a full recovery. 

[ElectricConversions]

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[KrunchyJD]

@KrunchyJD If the people that make the decisions and our politicians are smart the world will go to electric trains for distance travel, and bicycles (or bicycle type vehicles with electric assist) for shorter distances. We can do that or we can constantly go in and out of recession.