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Yeah, or maybe Big Oil is just pretty evil.

• philipkglass 10y ago
  I'd say the opposition right now is mostly Big Coal. If all coal and oil electrical generating capacity shut down and were replaced by renewables + gas it would be a net win for the oil and gas industry, because oil is a tiny fraction of electricity production and coal retirements boost gas demand. Gas is a flexible electricity source and a good complement to renewables. But a decade from now natural gas might be facing a significant competitive threat from renewables + storage.
  • r00fus 10y ago
    Big Coal and Big Oil work together far more often than not. Extensive renewable energy would eliminate the massive profit of power utilities and refineries both.
    • philipkglass 10y ago
      I would have agreed with you a few years ago, but coal producer antipathy toward O&G has increased a lot since fracking unleashed the cheap gas that has been eating their lunch. At the same time gas producers have softened their stance against climate action, calculating (correctly) that in the short-medium term coal-to-gas switching in the name of climate action can send a lot of new natural gas demand their way. As for the long term, either they don't care yet or don't really believe that natural gas and oil will eventually be in line for replacement too.
      • crdoconnor 10y ago
        >gas producers have softened their stance against climate action They simply pretended that they were "cleaner" than coal and gas, which isn't really true: http://www.newswise.com/articles/methane-leaks-can-make-fracking-gas-dirtier-than-coal-or-oil http://www.newswise.com/articles/methane-leaks-can-make-frac...