The Myth of the Oil Crisis: Overcoming the Challenges of Depletion, Geopolitics, and Global Warming [Paperback]

"Geologist, economist, and petroleum industry insider Mills makes an intelligent case for oil's continuing role as a major, growing energy source. A Herculean task, one would think, given public sentiment on the matter. Mills manages it by first neatly dividing opposing viewpoints into five camps: geologists (those who espouse peak oil theory), economists (the markets will work it out), militarists (use power to secure energy supplies), environmentalists (fossil fuels: no), and no-Luddites (fossil fuels, consumption, and materialism: no). He then conquers their positions with lively, exhaustive sourced arguments to say that there may be more conventional oil than reported, colossal unconventional sources, and plentiful energy substitutes. Mills shows deep understanding of the complexity of the issue, and while promising no easy fixes, he is yet hopeful: gloomy predictions do not resemble the real world and take no account of human integrity." -

Library Journal, Starred Review --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

"Geologist, economist, and petroleum industry insider Mills makes an intelligent case for oil's continuing role as a major, growing energy source. A Herculean task, one would think, given public sentiment on the matter. Mills manages it by first neatly dividing opposing viewpoints into five camps: geologists (those who espouse peak oil theory), economists (the markets will work it out), militarists (use power to secure energy supplies), environmentalists (fossil fuels: no), and no-Luddites (fossil fuels, consumption, and materialism: no). He then conquers their positions with lively, exhaustive sourced arguements to say that there may be more conventional oil than reported, colossal unconventional sources, and plentiful energy substitutes. Mills shows deep understanding of the complexity of the issue, and while promising no easy fixes, he is yet hopeful: gloomy predictions do not resemble the real world and take no account of human integrity." -

Library Journal, Starred Review

This book explores myths surrounding the global consumption of oil.With oil prices rising, drivers wince whenever they pull into the petrol station and businesses watch their bottom lines shrink. Predictions suggest that the situation will only get worse as oil dries up. It's a plausible argument, especially considering the rate at which countries like China and India are now using oil. Even more worrisome, the world's largest oil fields sit in unstable, geopolitical hotspots like Iran and Iraq. Some say we need to secure remaining supplies using military force, while others consider dwindling supplies a blessing that will help solve the problem of global warming. But is it really the 'end of oil'? Absolutely not, says geologist, economist, and industry-insider Robin Mills.According to the author, many ideas about petroleum depletion and its consequences are not just grossly overstated but plain wrong. Calmly and persuasively, he argues that: the supply of oil and gas is much larger than imagined by the pessimists; seeking political, military, or commercial control of oil supplies is unnecessary, self-defeating, and exorbitantly expensive; oil is merely one convenient source of energy; opportunities exist to decrease the global consumption of oil radically while maintaining a healthy economy; the environmental impact of fossil fuels is the most serious problem the world faces today. But a portfolio of solutions can solve it.There is no other book by an industry insider that effectively counters the 'peak oil' theory by showing where and how oil will be found in the future. There also is no other book by an insider that lays out an environmentally and geopolitically responsible path for the petroleum industry and its customers. "The Myth of the Oil Crisis" is a uniquely useful resource and it offers an abundance of one commodity now in short supply: hope for the future.

Robin M. Mills is an oil industry professional with a background in both geology and economics. Currently, he is a project evaluation manager for Dubai Energy.