The Bullroarer - Friday 11th July 2008

ABC - Tas call for national fuel strategy

A Tasmanian parliamentary committee report into alternative fuels has recommended the State Government push for a national fuel strategy.

SMH - Peak oil: petrol to reach $8 a litre

PETROL could hit $8 a litre within a decade as oil production begins to dwindle and demand continues to soar, a CSIRO study to be released today says.

The study, Fuel For Thought, warns this would add up to $220 a week to the cost of running a medium-sized passenger vehicle by 2018, resulting in severe social and economic consequences.

Scoop.co.nz - Transport Policy: A Replay of the Economic Past?

In February 2000, shortly after the Labour-led government was elected, the then Business Roundtable chairman Ralph Norris gave a speech entitled ‘Can New Zealand Afford to Replay the Economic Past?’

It was not a partisan speech. Mr Norris noted that under National-led governments, New Zealand’s economic framework had been weakened since the early 1990s and economic performance had suffered. He went on to warn, however, that the new government’s policy directions, involving more spending and regulation and higher tax rates, seemed likely to make matters worse.

NZ Herald - Petrol to hit $10 a litre within a decade - report

An Australian report released today says the price of petrol in that country could hit A$8 ($10) a litre within the next 10 years.

News.com.au - Swan optimistic about economy

"Given the global credit crunch, given the global oil shock, these figures are very welcomed figures indeed," Mr Swan told reporters in Sydney.

SMH - Untapped oil sources could serve Aussies

Untapped sources of oil within Australia could provide the country with fuel into the next century, a Queensland energy company says.

Scoop.co.nz - Oil Emergency Response Strategy updated

Energy Minister David Parker today released the updated Oil Emergency Response Strategy (OERS). The Strategy allocates roles and responsibilities for action in an emergency petroleum supply disruption, and outlines the measures that are available to the government to respond to such a situation.

Otago Daily Times - NZ 'Kuwait of wind', energy specialist says

Wind power will become the "new oil" in New Zealand, with smaller and smarter wind turbines countering threats posed by soaring oil prices, wind power specialist Geoff Henderson predicts.

The Age - Nuclear powers the right reaction

IF AUSTRALIA is serious about developing a cleaner energy equation, it could make a start by consigning to history some of the 20th century myths, phobias and prejudices about nuclear power. One element of the Garnaut report on climate change that falls short on intellectual integrity is the small section arguing that nuclear power should pretty much remain a no-go zone for Australia.

ABC - Big cattle shipment to Indonesia proceeds, despite transport problems

A truck shortage and a high fuel price in Australia and Indonesia are causing minor problems for the latest live export shipment in north Queensland.

The Daily Mercury - Groups offered say on shale oil plan

A CONTROVERSIAL plan to mine shale oil near the Whitsundays will open for public feedback in August. Queensland Energy Resources, a shale oil mining company, will create a community liaison committee so businesses, residents and industry groups can have their say about the future oil mine.

Gold Coast - Fuel Rip-Off On Again

The Age - Report 'no fuel' suspicion: watchdog

THE Petrol Commissioner has asked motorists to report petrol stations they suspect are withholding fuel when the price cycles are low.

Camden Advertiser - Garnaut adds fuel to the public transport issue

[.....]The obvious flaw in this scenario, however, is that that public transport is not an option for most Australian commuters.

Eighty percent of western Sydney’s full time workers, travel to work by car. Most lack the option of using public transport. Decades of failure by governments to provide proper transport infrastructure will leave commuters with no choice but to wear the higher petrol prices.

Stuff.co.nz - Manufacturers facing 'perfect storm'

The sector was far more robust than even five years ago. But this year the economy has been hit by rising fuel costs, a housing slowdown and higher input costs.

World oil prices are soaring, but prices are also up sharply for minerals, metals like steel and basic foods.

BNZ economists said the world was in one of the biggest commodity price booms in decades for oil, minerals, metals and foods.

Stuff.co.nz, The Press - On-farm inflation highest since 1980s

Rocketing fuel and fertiliser prices look set to drive up farm expenses again for meat and wool farmers.

LaTrobe Valley Express - Climate of fear

State Energy Minister Peter Batchelor admitted at the Gippsland Energy Summit 2008 that if the ETS is introduced, Latrobe Valley residents should brace for a power price hike.

He said the State Government was already planning a strategy to tackle the impost on consumers.

Power price rise fears follow last week's release of the Garnaut Review Draft Report which proposed an ETS to curb rising carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

News.com.au - AGL invests $37m in coal seam exploration

AGL Energy has invested $37 million in a coal seam gas production pilot and exploration and appraisal program with Galilee Energy in Queensland's Galilee Basin.

An obvious liquid fuel option for Tasmania is cellulosic biofuel freed up by the possible mothballing of the Tamar pulp mill. Gunn's Ltd (who laid off 135 workers today) were hoping for a log throughput of 5-8 Mtpa. Using the lower estimate and including thinnings like leaves and branches that could conceivably mean 100,000 barrels a day of liquid fuel. Then subtract internal fuel use in lieu of petro diesel. However none of the thermochemical or microbial processes such as Choren, Range, Verenium or Coskata seem quite straightforward yet.

I agree with the Age on the nuclear rethink. However let's give HFR geothermal and concentrating solar thermal until the end of 2009 to show if they can truly create baseload power.

In a report on Lateline last night (11/7/08), the CSIRO and the reporter used those two little words: Peak Oil.

I nearly fell off my chair.

"Petrol prices could hit $8/Litre in a decade!" A decade? Try two years.

How about big, red capital letters in Saturday's Sydney Morning Herald!

Classic cartoon - great catch.

I can't believe its almost midnight and I haven't opened today's paper yet...

I had to laugh at the two articles about QER's proposed oil shale mine near Proserpine.They claim to have interests in renewable energy sources in QLD,including gas.This must be one of those self reproducing fossil fuels?
Shale oil had a run in QLD with the Rundle deposit near Gladstone.The company,with QLD goverment support,had a pilot plant up and running for a while but couldn't make a go of it for financial and technical reasons.I think some taxpayer's money disappeared.The failure was fortunate given the devastation that a full scale oil shale operation would have caused.I believe that the EROI on oil shale is marginal at best entirely apart from environmental concerns.
Nothing has been learnt,apparently.As Alice said,things are just getting curiouser and curiouser.
Apologies to Lewis Carroll.

I looked at shale oil in Queensland last year:

http://anz.theoildrum.com/node/3310

On the gas front, biogas is renewable, though I don't think this is what they have in mind.

Gas from shale is also possible (the best shale oil extraction process - not that that is saying much - extracts gas from the shale, then burns the gas to power the conversion of the kerogen into rock - still pretty horrible but not as bad as the old retorting process) and is one source of unconventional gas we are likely to see emerge if we don't wake up and go down the clean energy route...
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conversion of the kerogen into rock

Gav, you mean "into oil"...

Thats a by-product - most of the output is rock :-)

Thanks for proof-reading my comments - I think I need an editor of my own.