I’ve been reading and thinking about energy trends lately and thought I’d discuss a little. My grandfather taught nuclear physics at Colorado University in Boulder, and wrote a textbook in 1993 titled: “Energy and the Environment”. In the first edition, he predicted peak oil - where demand of oil would decrease because we would run out the finite resource. Predicting the future of energy is notoriously difficult, and as it has turned out, peak oil hasn’t happened due to advances in technology such as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracking.
Most data suggests that global demand for oil and gas will rise for at least another decade, and then it becomes less clear what will happen. Oil giant BP suggests in their Energy Outlook that “Renewable energy is the fastest growing source of energy, contributing half of the growth in global energy supplies and becoming the largest source of power by 2040.” BP predicts that the peak demand for oil will be in the late 2030’s (read the report here: BP Energy Outlook ). Others disagree, and there are a variety of scenarios that depend on government action to mitigate climate change risks and the economics of renewable energy.
Regardless, I’ve been pondering what business opportunities lie ahead in the next 20-30 years. AAPG recently held a forum called “The Energy Transition Forum: A New Era for Geoscientists.” Here are a few of their suggestions for students and younger geoscientists: data will be key, so learning data science skills such as Python will be helpful, many skills are transferable from O&G to alternative energy (carbon capture and storage, geothermal, lithium for battery storage, soil stability for wind/solar farms), and collaboration across industries, disciplines and software will be important. You can read more here: AAPG Energy Transition Forum.