Part I

Part I

General thoughts about energy supply

Human beings are the only animals with the ability to ignite and use a fire. This advantage has been important for the growth of mankind, particularly during the past few decades, when the rapid rate of innovation in industry was especially facilitated by the immense richness of oil. Today, thousands of oil platforms exist globally, which provide the oil for ca. 50000 kWh of energy per year. Yearly, around lObn US$ are spent in drilling for new oilfields to secure the supply of oil and hence the base for industrial growth in future.

But, as with all fossil resources, the quantity of oil is limited and will not last for ever. A time will come for sure when all the existing accessible oil fields will have been exploited. What will then happen to mankind?

May the same happen as is observed in nature? Not only in animals but also in plants there are sudden "explosions of populations". Such growth naturally stops, however, as soon as a source of life runs dry. The organisms start suffering from deficiency symptoms and become dominated or eaten by stronger organisms.

How will human beings generate energy when all the oil resources we benefit from today are fully consumed? There is as yet no clear answer to this question. But regardless of what the answer may be, it is clear that the mankind will always want to continue building huge inventories of energy. With the declining quantity of fossil fuels it is critical today to focus on sustained economic use of existing limited resources and on identifying new technologies and renewable resources, e.g., biomass, for future energy supply.