Can we actually pump faster? Upping the extraction rate under a limited supply makes the downslope that much more pronounced (the Gompertz curve). First, the good news: oil production does not follow the Gompertz curve as of yet and we may not ever reach that potential given the relative difficulty of extracting oil at high rates. The fact that we have such a high dispersion in oil discoveries also means that the decline becomes mitigated by new discoveries. As for the bad news: easily extractable phosphate may have hit The Overshoot Point (TOP). And we have no new conventional sources. And phosphate essentially feeds the world.

Russia, Iran and Qatar announce cartel that will control 60% of world's gas supplies
Gas cartel could have a significant impact on Europe
Natural gas cartel would fail in bid for OPEC-like impact

Monbiot: We must start thinking in centuries
Crunch may put price tag on environment
Reuters summit-Economic woes may give planet a breather

Speak Now Against Bush's Great Coal Giveaway
Government report criticizes U.S. plans for carbon dioxide burial
Excerpt: 'Tar Sands'

Green energy is not a middle-class conceit, more the only way forward
Don't kill the planet in the name of saving the economy
Bolivia's climate challenge

Where does the US import oil and other petroleum products from?
Blowhard (PO animation from 1978)
Heinberg: Whither oil prices
NZ engineers warn of imminent oil shock

The run-up to Peak Oil was a major factor in the current economic crisis, and the changes emerging from the crisis may help us deal better with the challenges of the coming decade.

There is immediate need for a coherent policy with which the new US administration can deal with both the financial crash and the energy transition. Instead of propping up failing financial institutions, the new president must inject investment into the real economy by supporting wide-ranging but tightly coordinated projects to create far more renewable energy generation capacity, build railroads and public transport facilities, insulate millions of homes while providing alternative heat sources, and re-configure the national food system to dramatically reduce and soon eliminate the need for fossil fuels.

A digest of peak oil news including:
- Oil amidst the financial crisis
- The OPEC production cut
- The Russian meltdown
- Briefs

Russia Draws Closer to Venezuela (text & video)
Ahmadinejad slams US for Iraq 'oil theft'
U.S. policies may have contributed to Iran revolution, study says