Drilling Down: Batteries upend Peak Oil debate  

The AFR has a look at the dim future for oil producers in a world of electric vehicles and "peak oil demand" - Drilling Down: Batteries upend Peak Oil debate.

If "peak oil" conjures up thoughts of when oil output will reach its maximum then you're way behind the times. Now it's all about demand.

And rather than a debate about the geology, it's about technology, and when batteries will force consumption of oil – or at least oil used for transport fuels – into terminal decline.

In an assessment last week by Fitch Ratings of credit risks to various sectors from a breakthrough in battery technology, oil came at the top of the list, meriting a "serious threat" diagnosis. While the utilities and automotive sectors can scratch out some new opportunities from the rise of batteries, it's all downside for oil producers.