Lack of capital is preventing the petroleum industry from satisfying the public’s desire for abundant oil and natural gas By Garrett Baldwin 18
P
resident Joe Biden’s administration and the cable news talking heads blame $115 per barrel of oil and $5 a gallon of gas on a panoply of causes that include the reopening of the economy, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and “price gouging” by suppliers. But anyone working in oil and gas finance knows those reasons are spurious. Prices are rising because the energy sector is hungry for capital investment. The shortage of funds could threaten international financial stability and accelerate a global commodity shock that would make the transition to a clean energy economy even more complex. Already, rising oil and gas prices have fueled unsustainable price increases in industries ranging from fertilizer and food to shipping and
PHOTOGRAPH: ALLE RECHTE VORBEHALTEN
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Luckbox | May 2022
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4/8/22 9:56 AM