'Peak oil' Enters Mainstream Debate  

It looks like the BBC took our little voting campaign seriously when peak oil made it to the top of the list of subjects people want more coverage of. Adam Porter used to be kept in the relative obscurity of Al Jazeerah's english edition, but he seems to have been picked up as the BBC's peak oil correspondent now. Here's a new piece on a French report on the global oil industry. Oilcast also talks about the report in this show (MP3).

Is global oil production reaching a peak ? A few years ago only a handful of geologists and academics were considering such a possibility. But now it appears even governments are taking a serious look at the subject. The question is occupying more and more minds around the world.

A French government report on the global oil industry forecasts a possible peak in world production as early as 2013. The report 'The Oil Industry 2004' takes a long look at future production and supply issues.

But perhaps what is most interesting about this Economics, Industry & Finance Ministry report, is that it actually mentions a possible production plateau at all. Even one year ago it was unheard of to find the subject mentioned amongst government ministries or financial institutions. Now banks such as Goldman Sachs, Caisse D'Epargne/Ixis, Simmons International and the Bank of Montreal have all broached the subject.

"They are being forced to by circumstances," says Professor Richard Heinberg, author of 'peak oil' books Power Down and The Party's Over. "They have relied on optimistic data and rosy outlooks that are being proven to be incorrect."