A new report claims the UK will run out of oil in 5.2 years.
The Global Sustainability Institute at Anglia Ruskin University examined energy resources around the globe.
It found critical shortages in the UK, France and Italy.
According to data researchers gathered on known reserves and current consumption, the report found the UK has 5.2 years of oil, 4.5 years of coal and three years of gas remaining.
The report said: “Much of the discussion about ‘Peak Oil’ overlooks the fact that oil is unevenly distributed globally. Some countries have no oil reserves of their own, or very little (eg Japan), and are entirely dependent on the world market and market prices. Other countries, such as Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, have more than 300 years of oil left at their 2010 rates of internal consumption. Kuwait has more than 700 ‘years left’.
“The overall geographical pattern is well understood, with the greatest concentration of oil reserves and production in the Middle East, and the highest rates of consumption per head in Western Europe, North America, and Japan. Combining data about both reserves and consumption, the clearest conclusion to be drawn is the vulnerability of Europe, the region with the lowest numbers of “years left”. There are also countries outside the region in a similar situation, such as Turkey and Chile.”
However, Assistant Professor of Global Energy Dr Frederik Dahlmann of the University of Warwick, refuted the five year estimate.
He said: “While the UK will not run out of energy in five years’ time, politicians must do more to encourage ‘new energy entrepreneurs and business solutions’ to accelerate the shift towards an affordable, secure, low-carbon economy.
“Energy security forms a vital part of policymakers’ concerns over delivering energy in an affordable, reliable and sustainable way. The report by the Global Sustainability Institute highlights the ‘relative energy poverty’ that many European countries and the UK experience, particularly with regard to fossil fuels. Such snap-shot assessments provide an informative insight into the state of our resources, but also have to be viewed critically in light of changing economics, technologies and demand.
“What the report does do is demonstrate the need for ongoing commitment by policymakers to ensure that we are able to source the energy we need for ourselves and our economies. More importantly, while reliance on energy imports doesn’t necessarily have to be negative, in times of political and economic uncertainties in many exporting countries and regions, it is crucial that we also continue our support for developing more ‘home-grown’ fuels and energy demand solutions that reduce our overall dependence on imports.”
Professor Victor Anderson from the Global Sustainability Institute said the report fueled the need for the UK to become a more active contributor and user of renewable energy.
“The UK urgently needs to be part of a Europe-wide drive to expand renewable energy sources such as wind, wave and tidal power,” she said.
RenewableUK’s director of external affairs, Jennifer Webber, echoed her call.
“This report is a timely reminder of the need to develop our nation’s significant renewable energy resources to the maximum well before the UK’s fossil fuels dwindle away to nothing,” Webber said.
“That’s why it’s puzzling that the Conservatives have said they want to stop financial support for future onshore wind projects, especially as onshore wind is the cheapest mainstream form of renewable energy we have in the toolkit.
“The prospect of running out of fossil fuels in the UK by the end of the decade should focus minds on the absolute necessity of guaranteeing the generation of new low carbon power. Our import dependency has been growing every year, and we can’t let our nation’s energy security be at the whim of a foreign power.
“Onshore and offshore wind, wave and tidal energy will help deal with this, so they should be getting the right level of support politically and financially to guarantee the UK a secure power supply.
“This study shows new capacity needs to keep coming forward, but to give investors that message we really need long-term vision and political leadership – setting a 2030 target to cut carbon in the generation of electricity would be a major step in the right direction. That target should be embraced by MPs of all political parties – in fact it’s a bare minimum, as they should also be setting clear renewable energy targets to stimulate growth and investment, if they’re serious about making the transition from fossil fuels to renewables as smooth and secure as possible.”
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