If peak oil had a modern-hero, Matt Simmons would certainly be on the list of candidates.
Recently, he predicted BP's bankruptcy by the end of July and proposed to Bloomberg that we nuke the Gulf of Mexico seabed back to the stone age.
Although he is more often recognized for his outlandish oil price predictions (no, we haven't hit $300 per barrel... yet), and author of a book you should have read by now – Twilight in the Desert, Simmons is shifting gears once again.
This time, he's got his sights set on Ammonia. As you can see in the image above, ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen. Simmons' plan is to utilize offshore wind energy to produce ammonia, which can be used as a fuel.
The goal is to replace oil.
It's a long shot, and perhaps decades away from becoming a reality.
According to Simmons, “Imagine a series of 50-megawatt power plants from Washington County to Casco Bay that are sending electricity to barges with desalinization plants on board.”
Personally, I'm not holding my breath, but it's refreshing to see new ideas take shape. I'll keep a close eye on this one, and if you have any thoughts, please feel free to send in your comments.
Keith Kohl
Editor, Energy and Capital
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Now, you mention how wrong he was but do not mention that oil WAS going to the moon, just as he predicted (during "the bet") and would have easily hit $300 if the high oil price didn't strain the entire economy and knock the world back to where we are now. We still have not reached the level of oil use that we had back in that crazy July 2008. Remember that?
It's easy to call Matt crazy but remember that he knows what he is talking about, even if he is overly dramatic. If you take what he says and cut it down a few notches you would see he makes good sense, especially about Peak Oil.
Also, his information about how the oil industry works is priceless.
He may be a bit of a nut, but he's our nut. He is the Yin to the corporate Yang - somewhere in the middle is the truth.
Keith Kohl
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Keith, its all right here at the Iowa Energy Center. Simmons gave the last keynote.
http://www.energy.iastate.edu/Renewable/ammonia/ammonia.htm