BP Says America Is Just Years Away From Energy Self-Sufficiency http://www.businessinsider.com/bps-optimistic-outlook-says-the-us-will-achieve-energy-independence-2012-2/comments en-us Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 -0500 Sat, 12 Jul 2014 19:46:26 -0400 The Oil Drum http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f32643069beddf45c00001b Ariel Misenti Wed, 08 Feb 2012 07:01:52 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f32643069beddf45c00001b I have to say that for the past couple of hours i have been hooked by the amazing articles on this site. Keep up the great work. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2f528becad04df39000038 smallgovernment Sun, 05 Feb 2012 23:09:47 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2f528becad04df39000038 My wife and I have solar panels on our home, and we generate about 25-30% more than we use. We get a check back each year from the power company for the excess. The system will pay for itself in about 12-15 years. If you have the up-front capital, it is a wise investment IMO. A 30% federal tax credit is available until the end of 2016, and many states and/or power companies offer some sort of rebate/incentive. <a href="http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=tax_credits.tx_index" target="_blank">http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=tax_credits.tx_index</a> http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2ef00f69bedd5e05000049 Cuba Libre Sun, 05 Feb 2012 16:09:35 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2ef00f69bedd5e05000049 'The US Military is the world's largest single user of oil. If the US Military was forced to use solar energy instead of oil, that would be the end of this country's elective wars.' The US energy independence is anyway bad news to the military industrial complex. They won't be needed anymore. Japan and Europe would be left fighting on Iranian oil with China. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2ea5bcecad043e14000028 x Sun, 05 Feb 2012 10:52:28 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2ea5bcecad043e14000028 Cars run very well on natural gas. There are tens of thousands of cars, city buses, and long haul trucks running on compresed natural gas. Google "CNG tank", or "CNG filling station". http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2e1a96eab8eaeb7700002b another engineer Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:58:46 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2e1a96eab8eaeb7700002b Agree with you. What about propane? Simple, proven technology. Works very well. Much better than CNG. I don't know why it isn't more widely used. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2dc2f1ecad043c7e000063 crusader75 Sat, 04 Feb 2012 18:44:49 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2dc2f1ecad043c7e000063 The perennial American fantasy: perfect, total security and independence. Whatever happened to Reagan's Star Wars delusion? http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2db3ff69beddd218000010 gld Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:41:03 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2db3ff69beddd218000010 The problem with biodiesel and other fuels bio fuels is that the energy has to be made available through some process that itself requires energy. BTW cars will not run on natural gas. If it were practical, then we would be running them on natural gas. But it isn't because of fuel density. Because it is a gas, it must be compressed for storage and from a tank size perspective, you simply can't get enough gas stored for considerable range. 50 miles is about all you can get in a small car or light duty truck depending on the tank size. There in is the number one problem with running vehicles on natural gas. The government has long been wanting to run vehicles on natural gas which is why several energy labs have been working on metal hydride bed storage for gas absorption onto metal hydride. Unfortunately, there has been little improvement to cost and reliability. If there was a way to absorb gas onto a metal hydride and repeat the process 500 times with little cost, then you could store enough gas to run vehicles. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2db1b16bb3f7d312000014 gld Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:31:13 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2db1b16bb3f7d312000014 I'm an engineer, what's your excuse? http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d9f476bb3f72269000031 black swan Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:12:39 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d9f476bb3f72269000031 The US Military is the world's largest single user of oil. If the US Military was forced to use solar energy instead of oil, that would be the end of this country's elective wars. That alone would save trillions of dollars and millions of lives. Drunk drivers will also have a hard time causing accidents driving around in the daytime in their solar-powered cars. Alpha directed, your solar idea may just solve many of the country's problems. Now, If we could just find a way to get to Walmart to browse the empty shelves due to the end of trucking. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d963aeab8ea2c7b00003b Cuba Libre Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:34:02 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d963aeab8ea2c7b00003b 'All we have to do is END the subsidies for solar energy. ' There is the competition on the subsidies for solar energy and China is winning. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d95386bb3f7095f000022 Cuba Libre Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:29:44 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d95386bb3f7095f000022 'Peak oil and the Malthussian construct are false. ' That's what the communist utopia is about. Capitalism says the both are right concepts even if there might be temporary disturbances on the system trajectory. Communism assumed unlimited natural resources, capitalism scarcity and in the end only the rich can afford to use natural resources. Others will starve. See Easter Island. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d93cfecad044338000001 Cuba Libre Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:23:43 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d93cfecad044338000001 'Care to back that up? Sounds absurd to me. ' Yes, I see. The statistics says that Americans waste oil by using inefficient cars. ' If there was another way to run vehicles, it would be happening right now. ' If there were smarter people, you would be one of them? http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d92fc6bb3f72c59000026 Cuba Libre Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:20:12 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d92fc6bb3f72c59000026 'this can be done by reducing power and vehicle weight' By reducing friction in cars. Cars using biodiesel, natural gas or alcohol are common in some countries. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d87b4eab8ea9d6500001c gld Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:32:04 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d87b4eab8ea9d6500001c Care to back that up? Sounds absurd to me. Gasoline has 120,000 btu's/gallon of available energy. If there was another way to run vehicles, it would be happening right now. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d84a3eab8eaf65e000023 gld Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:18:59 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d84a3eab8eaf65e000023 I take issue with the assumption that "we expect the efficiency of the internal combustion engine is likely to double over the next 20 years" This statement is misleading. The efficiency of the IC engine can not make any significant improvements in efficiency as this term refers to the conversion of chemical energy to mechanical energy. That my friends is limited by the limits of the thermodynamic Otto cycle which is theoretically limited to 73% which is the carnot cycle which by itself is impossible due to heat and friction losses. Practically the internal combustion engine gets 30% thermal efficiency. I think this article would be more correct if it just stated that mpg would double in twenty years and this can be done by reducing power and vehicle weight. Not necessarily dependent upon efficiency. Go on to take credit for hybrid electric etc. This below from link <a href="http://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/04/nakata-20110411.html" target="_blank">http://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/04/nakata-20110411.html</a> Among the R&D projects Toyota Motor is exploring to further lower fuel consumption and emissions are two concepts on a pathway to deliver gasoline engines featuring more than 45% thermal efficiency for application in its future hybrid vehicles, according to Koichi Nakata of Toyota in his presentation today at SAE 2011 High Efficiency IC Engines Symposium in Detroit. The engine used in the first- and second-generation Prius (the 1.5L 1NZ-FXE) had a thermal efficiency of about 37%; the thermal efficiency of the new 1.8L unit in the third-generation Prius (2ZR-FXE) has a thermal efficiency of about 38%. Toyota is targeting a thermal efficiency of more than 40% with what Nakata called its Future Concept 1, followed by thermal efficiency of more than 45% in Future Concept 2 (which is based on concept 1). Back to me So I know it won't double in 20 years. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d7371eab8eabb42000021 Alpha directed Sat, 04 Feb 2012 13:05:37 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d7371eab8eabb42000021 geezus... That's such antiquated peak oil group think. FYI. Peak oil and the Malthussian construct are false. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d723decad046674000021 Alpha directed Sat, 04 Feb 2012 13:00:29 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d723decad046674000021 All we have to do is END the subsidies for solar energy. Sounds counterproductive and the solar industry will tell you it is. It isn't. It's a lie. Do NOT engage in the old argument that the petro industry "gets a gazillion in subsidy and renewables gets squat" WHO CARES. It's about disruption! End the solar subsidies and the solar industry will explode. The reason solar is too expensive is because it has never reached true scale -- because there is a false ceiling of adoption created by -- subsidy... There are over 400 MILLION people in India without electricity. They can not access current solar technology because it's too expensive. The reason it's too expensive becaus scale in the industry is predicated on ~20 GW of annual subsidy. The industry builds no factories past that and the price remains artificially high. What people need to understand is this. Your house is YOUR power plant with solar. You don't need remote production (~30% of energy is lost in production and transmission. But not when it's on your roof) any longer. END the solar subsidies, the market will explode. Coal done. Nuclear done. Fossils GREATLY IMPACTED due to a new electric car paradigm. Just end the damned solar subsidy and the world will radically change for the better -- much faster than people can imagine. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d604b69bedd536500002f westerncdn Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:43:55 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d604b69bedd536500002f BP or the Oil Drum should really know the difference on this. America does not own the Oil Sands, Canada does, and the pipeline to carry the product to the USA is uncertain. Not sure why they would include it in this study. Canada is already self sufficient in it's energy needs. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d5871eab8eaaf12000008 RIG Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:10:25 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d5871eab8eaaf12000008 Once the litigation scare for Transocean is a distant memory you'll see RIG rocket up towards $200/sh. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d570d6bb3f72273000022 black swan Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:04:29 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d570d6bb3f72273000022 America won't ever be energy self-sufficient unless it breaks the pricing power of the giant international oil monopolies that control the country's resources. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d56ab6bb3f7246b000042 freedomthroughdemocracy Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:02:51 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d56ab6bb3f7246b000042 Oil use makes the economy inefficient and the wasteful use of oil in the United States is the reason for its low global competitiveness. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d5620eab8eadc0b00002f blutown Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:00:32 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d5620eab8eadc0b00002f The only thing correct in the report is that demand will likely grow by 40%. However, peak energy SUPPLY has likely already occurred. Scarcity will cause energy prices to skyrocket (this past January had the most expensive January oil prices on record) and availability to be constrained (think 1970s oil embargo but permanent). Due to industrialized farming, food will also become expensive and scarce. All hell will break loose. The Department of Defense is already running models based on this and is leading the way on reducing it's energy footprint. This is the world scenario if we stay on current trajectory. But this is not inevitable if we recognize reality. The world of the 21st Century will be as different from the 20th as the 20th was from the 19th. We need to plan for change and not wait for change to be dictated to us on terms we aren't prepared to handle. BP's and most of the IEA's predictions are based on garbage assumptions. Ignore them. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d41456bb3f7194f000014 toddd Sat, 04 Feb 2012 09:31:33 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d41456bb3f7194f000014 ...and the Gulf is all cleaned up too! What ever happened to grass roots politics? Americans are such corporate slaves. http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d3c6c69beddb821000009 dargoola Sat, 04 Feb 2012 09:10:52 -0500 http://www.businessinsider.com/c/4f2d3c6c69beddb821000009 Fine. We'll just burn it faster. Getting me a Caterpillar to go to the mall