BP Energy Report: Thought We Talked About This
British Petroleum’s yearly energy market review suggested a vicious cycle
• less than 3 min read
BP’s (+0.62) yearly energy market review suggested a vicious cycle similar to our keto diet/entire pizza seesaw. Extreme weather causes people to use more energy on heating and cooling, which increases carbon emissions, which scientists say can cause...extreme weather.
The numbers: The report said global primary energy use increased 2.9% last year, likely in response to unusually hot and cold temperatures. Carbon emissions from energy use in turn grew 2%.
- That’s the biggest jump since 2011 and the equivalent of adding 400 million passenger vehicles globally. In the U.S., energy consumption rose by even more—3.5%, the strongest growth rate in 30 years after 10 years of decline.
- And that’s even as global economic growth slowed.
On one side: Global renewable energy consumption increased 15% in 2018, and China’s renewables consumption has grown 20x in the last 10 years. Overall, renewables accounted for about a third of the necessary increase in power generation.
On the other side: Coal accounted for about the same proportion.
Bottom line, borrowed from BP Chief Economist Spencer Dale: “Renewables can’t grow quickly enough.”
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