Policy

Green transport revolution needed to tackle ‘oil crunch’, says report

The UK Government needs to accelerate the green industrial revolution – and particularly the move to green transport – to tackle dwindling oil supplies, according to a new report.

The report, The Oil Crunch – a wake-up call for the UK economy, launched today by the UK Industry Taskforce on Peak Oil and Energy Security (ITPOES) warns that the UK is ill-prepared for rising oil prices brought on by dwindling supplies.

The Taskforce, which counts Virgin, Arup and Scottish and Southern Energy among its members, says that the effects of an oil crunch could start to be felt as soon as 2015, when the world reaches ‘Peak Oil’ – the point of maximum oil production after which levels will plateau or begin to diminish.

The Government, business and consumers must unite and take action ahead an ‘oil crunch’, which could lead to price rises for travel, heating, food and consumer goods hitting the most vulnerable the hardest.

The report says that the recession has delayed the oil crunch by two years, giving the Government a much needed breathing space to put new policies in place.

Legislation supporting new technologies and providing incentives for behaviour change need to be a priority, says the Taskforce, particularly to drive the switch to lower-carbon transport, including biofuels and electric vehicles.

The power generation and transmission infrastructure also need to be prepared to manage new demand patterns and potential price spikes and supply interruptions.

“Working together, we must ensure that the Government takes action to address the impact of the oil crunch and ensure the UK is better prepared to withstand higher and more volatile oil prices,” says Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group.

Competition for oil supplies will increase as the needs of non-OECD areas reaches 50% of global oil demand by the middle of the century. And while the recession has lead to flat or declining oil demand in OECD countries, this may not last as the economy picks up.

“As we reach the maximum rate of oil extraction, the era of cheap oil is behind us. We must plan for a world in which oil prices are likely to be both higher and more volatile,” says Arup chairman Philip Dilley.

Jeremy Leggett, chairman of Solarcentury, says only a collective sense of urgency and an effective collaboration between the Government and industry is standing in the way of a green revolution.

“Practitioners in the low-carbon industries know just how fast we could mobilise technologies able to soften the blow of the energy crunch while abating climate risk,” he says.

For further information:
http://peakoiltaskforce.net/
www.virgin.com/
www.arup.com/
www.scottish-southern.co.uk/
www.solarcentury.co.uk/

10 February 2010

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