Technology entrepreneur Elon Musk told reporters in Norway on August 29 that while we need to develop sustainable energy sources, the world will continue to extract oil and gas to sustain civilization. said I have to.
Musk told reporters ahead of the Offshore Northern Shore (ONS) conference in Stavanger, Norway, where Musk is located. I plan to speak.
Musk told reporters after arriving at the conference that he had come “to thank the Norwegian people for their support of electric vehicles”, thanking them for their “huge support”.
Tesla chief plans to offer “ideas for the transition to a sustainable energy world” at the conference, including possible expansion of wind power in the North Sea, the waters between Britain and Norway I added that I do.
“Combined with stationary battery packs, in very windy locations, it can generate enormous amounts of wind power. This can be a very powerful source of sustainable energy in the winter. there is,” said Musk.
‘We need oil and gas’
When asked if he should continue to use oil and gas, Mr. Musk responded in the affirmative.
“Realistically, we need to use oil and gas in the short term because otherwise civilization will collapse,” he said. “We need oil and gas for civilization to continue to function,” he continued, adding, “Any rational person would conclude so.”
Not only do we need to keep using oil and gas to sustain civilization, Musk said, “We need more exploration at this point.”
The use of fossil fuels should continue at the same time as continued efforts to “accelerate progress in sustainable energy,” he added.
Musk’s remarks about the continued need for fossil fuels to sustain civilization come at a time when the oil and gas industry looks cautiously to the future.
‘Hungry for capital’
American oil and gas producers face shrinking capital supplies, a hostile regulatory environment, and material and labor shortages, all of which pose major obstacles to new drilling.
“Our industry is starved for capital,” said Anthony Gallegos, CEO of Independence Contract Drilling, in a previous interview with The Epoch Times, noting that banks are offering revolving credit lines and asset-based lines of credit (ABLF). pointed out that they are becoming increasingly reluctant to provide oil and gas industry.
“Right now, probably a third of the banks are willing to offer revolvers and ABLF. [oil and gas] Service companies are up significantly compared to six years ago,” he added.
Banks and investors are cutting funding for new fossil fuel projects, driven by both economic and political factors.
In line with environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles movement, more than 100 banks representing 38% of global banking assets are United Nations Net Zero Banking Alliance. In it, they commit to transitioning their lending portfolio to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Many US banks have signed up to this initiative.
Aside from ESG developments, the oil and gas industry is emerging from a decade of overinvestment in new fracking projects, with many investors now calling for a more cautious approach.
“I don’t think there will be an influx of capital into the industry like there was in 2012-2014,” Gallegos said.
“Investors have made it clear: ‘We’re not here to fund your growth just for the sake of growth. If we’re going to give you money, As investors, we have to look at something and show a path to generating returns.
In addition to increased investor caution, there is also a hostile regulatory environment. Recently explained The Biden administration’s energy policy is “radical” and “based on anti-fossil fuel fiction that is causing unnecessary hardship and causing great harm to Americans.”
Gasoline prices soared to record highs under President Joe Biden, but in his first year in office, U.S. oil production fell 9% below 2019 levels, the worst shock of the pandemic in 2020. was below the level of
Kevin Stocklin contributed to this report.
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Tom Ozimek has a broad background in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications, and adult education. The best writing advice he’s ever heard comes from Roy his Peter Clark.