, Columnist
Oil’s Lost Decade Is About to Be Repeated
Fossil fuels will receive just half the investment going to clean energy this year. Look to China and you’ll see why.
Oil is about to hit another lost decade.
Photographer: Brandon Bell/Getty Images
For as long as most of us can remember, a rule of thumb has held true: Every year, the world’s production of oil goes up by one million barrels a day.
In 1983, the figure stood at 56.6 million barrels. In 2023, 40 years later, it was 40 million barrels more: 96.3 million. Annual figures may jump around thanks to wars, recessions, and the rise and fall of economies, but averaged over the longer term, every decade we’ve added an extra 10 million daily barrels to the headline total.