The Oil Drum

One of the threats from peak oil is the potential for financial ruin as oil prices run up. If you were invested in airline or automotive stocks through the recent run up in oil prices, you have probably seen those investments lose a lot of value. If, on the other hand, you were invested in oil futures, oil companies, or oil field service companies - you have probably done well even as the overall stock market slumped. The idea of profiting from the peak - an event that is likely to cause misery for those who are least prepared - may seem an odd combination. It almost feels like "Profit from Homelessness." But the reality is that unless you understand how energy prices affect the prospects of various sectors, you are placing yourself at a financial disadvantage.

Thus Profit from the Peak - the new book co-authored by my friend Chris Nelder - was destined to spark a lot of interest. Chris and I agree on most things energy-related, but we do also have some areas of sharp disagreement. In this review, I will explain what I liked about the book, but I will also detail my differences. Consider this a partial review, and a partial commentary on some of the particular topics in the book. However, my comments, and anything posted here at The Oil Drum, should never be construed as investment advice.

When I read James Howard Kunstler's (JHK) book The Long Emergency, it had a profound impact on me. I had been aware for many years that "running out of oil" was a serious matter. After all, I took on the challenge of peak oil in my graduate thesis in 1995. But my focus was more on finding a source that could replace oil as it ran out. Reading The Long Emergency was the first time it really hit me that I was missing a lot of key pieces of the picture.

I have been a fan of Robert Bryce’s writing for a long time. His style is witty and entertaining, and he is a debunker-extraordinaire. His newest book, Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of Energy Independence, is a must-read for anyone interested in energy issues. Concerning the topic of energy and the many myths associated with energy issues, this is a debunker’s bible.

At the beginning of 2007, as I was preparing to move to Scotland, I made a number of resolutions:

My Energy Resolutions for 2007

I updated the story once in Walking the Talk.

Time to look back and see how I did. (Also, be sure to give me your book recommendations for 2008. It's been a while since we discussed books.)

For some reason I especially like to read books on Peak Oil, sustainability, and energy issues while traveling. Part of the reason is that traveling always makes me reflective. Part of the reason is that these books are often an ice-breaker that allows me to talk about energy with other travelers. On previous trips I read Jared Diamond's Collapse and John Howe's The End of Fossil Energy (reviewed here). On my latest trip I read Mick Winter's Peak Oil Prep and Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth. I started reading Peak Oil Prep during my first flight, and while the man sitting across the aisle from me reading the National Enquirer didn't show much interest in what I was reading, the woman sitting next to me reading about Christina Aguilera's confessions in Glamour kept glancing at the book. But unfortunately, she never asked about it and we never struck up a conversation. Opportunity missed.

Remember, we discussed Dr. Bartlett's lecture on the exponential function re: population and peak oil here: (link)

The lecture itself can be found over at GPM now (because FTD is no more, sadly): (link).