• Question: How can we stop our oil running out?

    Asked by 534sftb22 to Neil on 13 Mar 2015.
    • Photo: Neil Taylor

      Neil Taylor answered on 13 Mar 2015:

      Hi 534stfb22!

      Great question!

      I’m going to assume that when you say “our”, you’re talking about the North Sea – some of which is classed as being in the UK. Our oil is certainly depleting, but the question is – at what point do you consider it “run out”?

      Production from the North Sea is likely to stop while there is still some oil in the ground. This is because there is a cost associated with extracting the oil. If this cost is greater than the price the company can get for selling it, it will not be worth their while getting it out!

      Although, in the end, there’s nothing we can really do with regards to preventing it running out; we can’t “make” more, as it took millions of years for the oil to be formed in the first place. What we can do, however, is start to transition to more environmentally friendly forms of energy to lessen our reliance on oil and gas as a power source. This will probably include a mix of renewable and nuclear power.

      Hope this helps!

Comments