¿When will the oil run out? It is a question that we have all asked ourselves at some time in life. Oil is the world's most widely used fossil fuel for power generation and in many other areas. Oil reserves are limited and now the planet does not have time to regenerate them on a human scale. The depletion of this fossil fuel has humanity in concern.
Therefore, we are going to dedicate this article to tell you when oil will run out and what the consequences were.
Oil characteristics
It is a mixture of a wide variety of hydrocarbons in the liquid phase. It is composed of other large impurities and is used to obtain various fuels and by-products. Petroleum is a fossil fuel derived from fragments of living aquatic, animal and plant organisms. These creatures live in the sea, lagoons and mouths near the sea.
Oil was found in the media of sedimentary origin. This means that the substances that have been formed are organic and covered by sediment. Deeper and deeper, under the action of the pressure of the earth's crust, it is transformed into hydrocarbons.
This process takes millions of years. Therefore, although oil is produced constantly, its rate of production is negligible for humans. What's more, the oil consumption rate is so high that the date of its depletion has been set. In the oil formation reaction, the aerobic bacteria act first and the anaerobic bacteria go deeper. These reactions release oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur. These reactions release oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur. These three elements are part of volatile hydrocarbon compounds.
When sediment is compressed under pressure, bedrock is formed. Later, due to the effect of migration, the oil began to permeate all the more porous and permeable rocks. These rocks are called 'storage rocks'. The oil concentrates there and remains in it. In this way, the oil extraction process is carried out to extract it as fuel.
When will the oil run out
When "Mad Max" was released in 1980, the hypothesis about the end of the world where fuel shortages would change the world did not seem like science fiction. Mel Gibson's suffering during the trip reflects the fear of the real world, due to the increase in energy prices, the burning of wells in Iran and Iraq due to the war and the restraining orders.
However, Mad Max was wrong. The last barrel of oil burned on earth will not cost millions of dollars and its value will be zero. This will not be the last time, because it is over, but because nobody wants the next time. It's a XNUMXth century question to worry about when oil will run out. In XXI, the new question is how long we want to continue using it.
The immense fear of oil has so far revolved around the decisive moment when production peaks (peak oil) and becomes increasingly scarce.
Since the first barrel of oil was extracted in Pennsylvania (United States) in 1859, demand has not stopped growing. What happens if the existing wells are exhausted? This is the worst nightmare of world progress. Oil has powered the world for 150 years, but it may no longer be its economic engine ten years from now.
Even OPEC, the mythical cartel of oil-exporting countries, admits that peak demand is approaching, that is, when oil consumption peaks and goes into permanent decline. What did not reach an agreement were the terms.
Oil extraction
What is changing the rules of the game is the latest technological advance. First, because they allow the extraction of reserves and the use of unconventional hydrocarbons in ultra-deep waters, which is why the end of oil that is so close is getting further and further away. What's more, the development of alternative energy sources makes them increasingly efficient. According to experts, they will eventually replace fossil fuels.
OPEC believes that declining global demand after 2040 is the most likely future scenario. Although they recognized that if most countries take seriously the measures to tackle climate change agreed at the Paris summit, by 2029, you may reach the upper limit sooner. Under these circumstances, they predicted that global consumption would rise from the current 94 million barrels per day to a high of 100,9 million barrels per day in just ten years, then slowly begin to decline.
The research of the environmental protection organization is more optimistic and advances the maximum demand until 2020. According to its calculations, Solar energy will represent 23% of the world's supply in 2040 and will reach 29% in 2050.
However, this change will not happen overnight. Oil still accounts for 31% of global primary energy demand (while renewable energy, including hydropower and biomass energy demand, only accounts for 13%), so its disappearance will not happen suddenly. The companies in this industry and the producing countries are preparing for a new world completely different from the one we know.
Oil prices have stabilized between $ 60 and $ 70 a barrel and it is unlikely that they will rise. Another big problem is the price. Based on market consensus, it won't be much higher than it is now, or at least it won't see the $ 100 high three years ago. The new upper limit is around US $ 60/70 per barrel, because from this threshold, hydraulic fracturing and deepwater mining that concern traditional producing countries become profitable. Furthermore, if the price of hydrocarbons exceeds the upper limit, investment in alternative energy sources will be further stimulated and demand will decrease.
I hope that with this information you can learn more about when oil will run out and what is its importance.