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Oil Giant Total Sees Electric Cars Seriously Cutting Into Oil Demand Soon

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Realistically EV growth will outpace progress in renewable energy infrastructure/capacity. Also assuming technological increases (mechanical recharging, etc.) lag behind...what will be powering the grid for these? The power has to come from somewhere.

I'd guess natural gas, in which case major oil companies are fine for a while?

As the use of renewables increase, the demand for natural gas and gasoline power stations will increase until power storage technologies catch up. Several areas are running into problems with power gluts during the midday, greatly changing the demand for different types of power generation, as demand for power that can be spun up for the evening hours increases.

Power stations that are prohibitively expensive to turn on and off, like nuclear and coal, will become more prohibitively expensive.

Would have to dig up the article I was reading but it is super interesting how the economics of power is very quickly changing.
 

SpecX

Member
Now if we can just get electric cars down to affordable prices we'll be in business.

Depends on what you're looking for. I was able to get a used 2015 Volt (I know not fully electric) for $12k and not a ton of miles on it. New this thing sells for $34k+ and I have yet to have to put gas in it the 2 months I've been driving it.
 
Yes. Please bring about the death of the oil industry, or at least the internal combustion engine. It's f***ed over the world enough.

Depends on what you're looking for. I was able to get a used 2015 Volt (I know not fully electric) for $12k and not a ton of miles on it. New this thing sells for $34k+ and I have yet to have to put gas in it the 2 months I've been driving it.

THIS. There are affordable EV or PHEV options out there in the pre-owned market now. 2015 Leafs for $14-16K. 2015 Volts for $18K. But nope... people want their gas guzzlers.
 
D

Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
I have to imagine the vehicle service industry is going to shrink substantially. EV powertrains are very simple compared to gas vehicles.

Exactly. Outside of part replacement, the regular maintenance plan basically boils down to rotating tires.
 
Maybe oil companies should have gotten in ahead of the curve on other energy businesses. Like, you know, they've been being urged to do, or even sort of required to do by law, for years.
 
Solar panel tech has made enormous strides in the past decade. We've still some time to go before mass production on efficient panels becomes common place but China is certainly working on it.

The fact of the matter is, Bill Nye is right when he says the world could simultaneously go completely green and grow the world economy right now if we just decided to do it.

Of course it could. The world has had three years of flat emissions growth with a growing economy, we've already showed economies can grow with reducing emissions.

Emissions growth and economic growth have been decoupled.
 

zelas

Member
Maybe oil companies should have gotten in ahead of the curve on other energy businesses. Like, you know, they've been being urged to do, or even sort of required to do by law, for years.

The same can be said to towns across the country who still choose to have economies so invested in oil but will eventually be doing the same whining the coal industry currently is.
 

Aureon

Please do not let me serve on a jury. I am actually a crazy person.
As the use of renewables increase, the demand for natural gas and gasoline power stations will increase until power storage technologies catch up. Several areas are running into problems with power gluts during the midday, greatly changing the demand for different types of power generation, as demand for power that can be spun up for the evening hours increases.

Power stations that are prohibitively expensive to turn on and off, like nuclear and coal, will become more prohibitively expensive.

Would have to dig up the article I was reading but it is super interesting how the economics of power is very quickly changing.

Sadly, sans massive progress in the battery arena, there's practically only gas as fast off\on.
 
Yes. Please bring about the death of the oil industry, or at least the internal combustion engine. It's f***ed over the world enough.



THIS. There are affordable EV or PHEV options out there in the pre-owned market now. 2015 Leafs for $14-16K. 2015 Volts for $18K. But nope... people want their gas guzzlers.

An 18k used car isn't affordable.

...and electric cars simply are not viable in many parts of the country where people commonly drive long distances.
 
An 18k used car isn't affordable.

...and electric cars simply are not viable in many parts of the country where people commonly drive long distances.

The 2nd part of your post will be true for all of a year. There'll be about a half-dozen EV options that get >200 range one year from today.
 

Ether_Snake

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It will be faster than that. Government action to electrify public transport will favor the infrastructure needed to increase the adoption of EVs in private transportation.

That being said, private cars sales will sink as well. The absurdity of having miles and miles of streets littered with cars parked often for a few days in a row other than to be moved to avoid parking tickets, or used less than an hour a day, is going to end. Car utility rate will increase massively and sink private ownership.
 

platocplx

Member
Good good. I also hope we still are pushing for better energy sources as well. We could have gone SO much farther with nuclear energy we could have gotten away from coal and gas and oil so much sooner if we actually spent time researching nuclear energy vs just for weapons smh.
 

catmincer

Member
Unfortunately where I live electric cars aren't yet a financially viable option. But hybrids are the same price as a petrol car so I bought a Prius.
 

Jive Turkey

Unconfirmed Member
My wife is a +1 to that chart. Our house went from about 5 tanks of gas per month to less than 1. When it's time for me to get a new car it'll be another +1.
 
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