Energy Economics Quotes

Now, of course, cold fusion is the daddy of them all in a way, in terms of value, so I think that viewed in a social way, from the point of social considerations and economics, it will tell you that this thing will stay around.

Higher energy prices act like a tax.

In the near future, despite the development of alternative energy, when you look at the economics and environmental standards, then there's no other source of primary energy in the world than natural gas. Well, perhaps there is nuclear energy but there are also a lot of issues there and there are opponents of nuclear energy. Gas doesn't have those opponents. But there is a country that is, obviously, the world leader in gas reserves. That's our country, the Russian Federation.

Nuclear power plants are all purchased by central planners and subsidized by the public purse…. Nuclear energy has died from an uncontrollable attack of market forces.

Energy is the ultimate convertable currency.

Of the 55 refineries closed in America in the last 10 years, they were all closed for economic reasons, mostly oil company mergers. Not a single one was closed for environmental purposes or objections.

Higher energy costs are unavoidable in all future scenarios.

The technologies for the alternative energy sources exists today. The economics are compelling. The public health is compelling. Why would we maintain a focus on a 17th-century technology, when there are 21st-century alternatives that are both necessary and available? And the answer is the subversion of democracy.

The last thing we need to do when natural gas has been such a blessing is raise the severance tax.

As we move to diversify our economy, we are particularly aware that we need oil to get out of oil.

In 80% of the world, energy will be bought where it is economic. You have to help the rest of the world get energy at a reasonable price.

Governments need to be seriously sceptical about whether new coal provides a good deal for their citizens.

Intermittency [in availability for wind and solar] changes the economics, particularly this requirement that the power company at all times be able to require power. That's large.

The one thing people seem to forget is the more oil we have, the lower the price and the lower the profits the oil companies make.

The debate about climate change in many ways is tied to the petroleum industry. If the value of petroleum was considerably less than it is, and the value of coal was considerably less than it is, there would be much less debate about this.

Probably no single event highlights the strength of Campbell's argument (on peak oil) better than the rapid development of the Alberta tar sands. Bitumen, the world's ugliest and most expensive hydrocarbon, can never be a reasonable substitute for light oil due to its extreme capital, energy, and carbon intensity. Bitumen looks, smells, and behaves like asphalt; running an economy on it is akin to digging up our existing road infrastructure, melting it down, and enriching the goop with hydrogen until it becomes a sulfur-rich but marketable oil.

Renewable energy is not more expensive than fossil fuel when you factor in life-cycle costs.

Oil has allowed us to think about economics as though energy doesn't matter.

The U.S. should incentivize energy production instead of penalizing it.

Even if major funding is obtained for cold fusion, conceivably the phenomenon could suffer from problems as intractable as those of hot fusion. It may never work reliably or generate enough energy to be commercially viable.

If anybody is so mad at Vladimir Putin, you know what they could do? They could advocate for a gas tax. He gets all his leverage from selling gas and oil. If we had a gas tax that made that less palatable, he would be less of a player on the world stage.

Let us rid ourselves of the fiction that low oil prices are somehow good for the United States.

More customers for Canadian oil means that Canadian producers can charge more for their oil, which then means that American businesses and consumers will pay more for oil.

Renewable energy has economic advantages that extend beyond steady, predictable electric rates - and Maine is in a good position to capitalize on those opportunities.

Saudi Arabia is a very responsible country. For decades, we used our oil policy as responsible economic tool and isolated it from politics.