Climate Denial Crock of the Week

Fossil Fuel Bros want you to continue to bow the head, bend the knee, and pay thru the nose to any Russian Dictator, Arab Oligarch, or Texas Tycoon that is blackmailing you. Fortunately for us, the Ukrainians, and the Europeans, are saying “Hell, No.”

Houston Chronicle:

European oil giant BP predicted Monday the energy price spike caused by the war in Ukraine would drive a faster shift away from oil and other fossil fuels, as nations worried about their energy security turn to wind and solar power.

The oil company reduced its forecast for oil demand in 2035 by almost 6 percent from last year’s levels and raised its forecast for renewable energy, which also includes bio and geothermal energy, by the same amount.

“The events of the past year have highlighted the complexity and interconnectedness of the global energy system. The increased focus on energy security as a result of the Russia-Ukraine war has the potential to accelerate the energy transition as countries seek to increase access to domestically produced energy, much of which is likely to come from renewables and other non-fossil fuels,” said Spencer Dale, chief economist at BP.

The downgrading of oil demand comes as companies and government officials grapple with an increasingly volatile global energy market, as nations move to shift society away from fossil fuels but continue to rely on them for the vast majority of the world’s energy supply.

Speaking at an event Monday hosted by BP, Jason Bordoff, director of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, said governments need to overhaul energy policies like they did following the oil crisis of the 1970s.

“The energy transition is not going to be orderly. It’s too big a transition to undertake,” he said. “We’re not going to perfectly coordinate those declines in supply and investment.”

The new forecast comes as European nations move to reduce reliance on Russian natural gas by increasing investments in wind, solar and other forms of clean energy.

Increasingly cheap wind and solar power is helping that transition along. But its unclear whether they will be able to move fast enough to meet their targets of net zero emissions by mid century, due to the slow pace of permitting and building power lines and other infrastructure needed to support a cleaner grid, Dale said.

“Cost competitiveness of wind and solar is a necessary but not sufficient factor (to reach net zero emissions),” he said.

Barrons:

In its 2023 energy outlook, the British oil giant cut its oil demand forecast in 2035 by 5%, compared with last year’s report, while it sees natural gas demand 6% weaker. BP raised its 2035 demand outlook for renewables 5%, and nuclear by 2%, in its central scenario based on government decarbonization targets.

“The increased importance placed on energy security as a result of the Russia-Ukraine war leads over time to a shift away from fossil fuels towards locally produced non-fossil fuels, accelerating the energy transition,” BP said Monday.

The company said the impact was concentrated in Asia and the European Union, as both are currently heavily reliant on oil and natural gas imports.