The Bottomless Barrel

The oil business has never been truly a market, where prices are determined by simple supply and demand. Instead it is distorted by long lead times, a producer cartel, subsidies and a lack of true alternatives. Jonathan Lamb argues that this is all changing. Fracking has provided a resource with unparalleled flexibility, subsidies are in retreat, natural gas is conquering all, while the price gyrations of the past decade have forced an industry focus on costs and technology. The threat of alternatives is forcing the pace of efficiency and the threat of peak demand has changed the way that resource holders view the business. Oil prices are driven more by market forces than ever before, making high prices unsustainable, potentially good news for consumers, if not the planet.