"Peak Oil," which is when the supply and production of oil peaks and then drops off slowly, has already been reached, according to two International Energy Agency (IEA) whistleblowers. These two spoke to the Guardian on condition of anonymity, with some alarming information.
Peak Oil was reached in the United States in 1970, as predicted by American geophysicist M. King Hubbert, whose Hubbert's peak theory is the basis for this term. Since then U.S. oil production has continued to drop. Hubbert made the prediction in 1956.
It is obvious to many that oil reserves are a finite resource. After all, there is no evidence that there are new Carboniferous plants being crushed under billions of tons of pressure anywhere in the world producing more oil. Still, few people realize how drastically changed a world without oil would be.
For example, plastics and synthetics are made with oil. Fertilizer, which has led to the explosion of population around the world by enabling us to grow more food, is also made with oil. In reality, oil powers much more of our lives than many are aware of.
In the Guardian report, the first IEA whistleblower said that the reserve figures had been manipulated to prevent panic buying.
"The IEA in 2005 was predicting oil supplies could rise as high as 120m barrels a day by 2030 although it was forced to reduce this gradually to 116m and then 105m last year. The 120m figure always was nonsense but even today's number is much higher than can be justified and the IEA knows this.
"Many inside the organisation believe that maintaining oil supplies at even 90m to 95m barrels a day would be impossible but there are fears that panic could spread on the financial markets if the figures were brought down further. And the Americans fear the end of oil supremacy because it would threaten their power over access to oil resources."
Meanwhile, the second informant said it was well-known within the IEA that it was imperative not to anger the U.S. He added, however, that we are already at Peak Oil. "We have [already] entered the 'peak oil' zone. I think that the situation is really bad."
At the same time, it appears the IEA may, according to some, also be altering its forecast of demand, which would calm fears. The WSJ reported last week that the IEA will this week, for the second year in a row, reduce its forecast for growth of oil demand. That will come in its World Energy Outlook report.
The IEA was created in 1974 after the oil crisis. It was intended to safeguard oil supplies to the west. The annual World Energy Outlook is produced under the purview of Fatih Birol, the IEA's chief economist.
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