Alternative energy’s got oil over a barrel

Friday, May 29, 2009 | Posted by: Brian Maguire
Categories: Business, Environment | Tags: innovation, entrepreneurs, government, renewable energy, energy, europe, science

OPEC has delayed 35 of 150 scheduled oil production projects. Oil prices have swirled between $147 a barrel last July, to $32 per barrel in February. China has announced investment of $400bn in solar energy production.

 

For over a decade Europe led the way in renewable energy. But now, China and the United States look set to dominate the global renewables market. Entrepreneurs rise and thrive on the tectonic plates of history, and when in the future, we look in the rear view mirror of our hydrogen Hummer we will see how the collision of environmental and economic needs created a new mountain of money. American and Chinese leaders see now as the moment to stimulate their economies with an alternative energy stimulus plan. They bring to the table not just the economic and security issues of energy supply, but a determination to re-skill and retool fading industries.

President Obama’s administration is committed to an 80% reduction in carbon emission by 2050, and his appointment of Nobel Laureate Stephen Chu as Energy Secretary demonstrates a renaissance for science at the heart of government. Leadership in Madison Avenue is emerging too. Advertising and marketing giants, Ogilvy & Mather, have chosen this moment to launch a sustainability division - OlgilyEarth - to help clients communicate environmental strategies.

Forces of nature are now being harnessed not just with colossal solar energy projects, but by firms like Bluewater Wind which has mobilised substantial grassroots on the USA’s east coast. Bluewater is engaged in an offshore wind farm project which will yield electricity sufficient for the needs of 100m Americans – meteorologists confirm wind energy can be harnessed 87% of the hours of the year, which is a level of predictability and sustainability beyond the scope of oil.

Science and a new economic prosperity have frequently been bedfellows, never more romantically than during the era of Da Vinci. Discovery led to innovation, led to education, led to prosperity.

Alternative structures begin with great ambition and good sense, floundering on the persistent need for high calibre leadership. Often, new beginnings are corrupted by dominant groups. As we herald the clear dawn of a new energy age, as big oil loses its black golden lustre, expect the rise of new energy giants, dominant groups, determined to assert control in capital markets.

However, energy market volatility may soon give way to a more egalitarian, stable, dependable supply of alternative energy. Successful energy ventures will attract more capital to the sector, though some investors have seen the future and are investing now, Boone T. Pickens for example, one of the world’s most successful oil investors. Pickens is a zealous convert to alternative energy, wind power in particular; he’s investing $58m of his own money in the ‘Pickens Plan’ – a town hall strategy to boost wind energy uptake. As this octogenarian investor sails on, he’s not using SatNav, his philosophy is simple: “If you’re on the right side of the issue, just keep driving until you hear glass breaking. Don’t quit.”

T. Boone Pickens:
http://www.boonepickens.com/helping/default.asp

Bluewater Wind
http://www.bluewaterwind.com/