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If US attempts to run on gasoline forever it will simply not survive. When the economy is fully electrified, at scale, the operational cost of energy becomes p
by perfunctory 7y ago
If US attempts to run on gasoline forever it will simply not survive.
When the economy is fully electrified, at scale, the operational cost of energy becomes practically zero (no extraction, refinement, delivery, spill cleanup). Economies that run on fossil fuels will simply become too expensive and hence uncompetitive. If US doesn't shake off the grip of the fossil industry, it's not too hard to imagine the sunset of the American empire.
- hn_throwaway_99 7y ago> When the economy is fully electrified, at scale, the operational cost of energy becomes practically zero (no extraction, refinement, delivery, spill cleanup). This doesn't make any sense. How do you suppose that electricity is to be generated?
- avmich 7y ago> How do you suppose that electricity is to be generated? Without use of oil, which would make that electricity cheaper. Wind, solar, hydro, nuclear, geothermal...
- hn_throwaway_99 7y agoNot sure why you think those sources have anywhere near "an operational cost close to zero", given that most of them are currently far more expensive than fossil fuels. Even in cases where some of them beat fossil fuels, that doesn't mean that cost benefit will scale, and you also have the significant, unsolved problem of energy storage required with some of those sources.
- avmich 7y agoWhat are the operational costs of wind and solar sources? I wouldn't say energy storage problem is "significant" in this context, though for different people, who see this subject differently, glass can be half-full or half-empty. Yes, there is a problem but not forbidding extension of deployment now.