The Coming World Of “Peak Oil Demand,” Not “Peak Oil,” By Michael Klare
At the beginning of this century, many energy analysts were convinced that we were at the edge of the arrival of “peak oil”; a peak, that is, in the output of petroleum in which planetary reserves would be exhausted long before the demand for oil disappeared, triggering a global economic crisis. As a result of advances in drilling technology, however, the supply of oil has continued to grow, while demand has unexpectedly begun to stall. In other words, global oil demand will peak long before supplies begin to run low, creating a monumental challenge for the oil-producing countries.