ONE thing above all else underpins our comfy, mobile lifestyle – cheap energy. And on this score we could be in for a big shock: we are going to run out of cheap oil. That’s not oil per se, but we’re approaching the point when global demand for oil will outstrip supply. For rich people this will mean a rise in the cost of living, but for the poor it could spell disaster.
It is not clear when we will reach this tipping point. The timing is the subject of fierce debate between free-market economists, with their perfect markets, and petroleum…
