While many people are asking when the world will recover from the global recession, one expert is offering up a different way of thinking.
Richard Heinberg, of the Post-Carbon Institute, says the end of economic growth is inevitable as oil reserves run out, and we will soon face a new reality.
“Conventional oil production is at about a little over 75 million barrels a day, where it’s been since 2005,” he says. So even with very high, persistently high oil prices over the past few years – in 1998 a barrel of oil was $12, today it’s ten times that – even with very high oil prices we’re seeing stagnant rates of production.”
Mr Heinberg says Mitt Romney’s claim that the United States could be oil-independent within eight years is unrealistic.
“Our analysis at the Post-Carbon Institute suggests that these claims are being wildly overblown.”
He says persistently high oil prices are undercutting the global economy.
Watch the video for Firstline’s full interview with Richard Heinberg