Simmons is spot on. I reckon we're going to see some major airlines collapse in the next year as well as our integrated logistics systems begin to break down which means no food in the supermarkets. Time to grow vegies and keep a few chickens just like GrandMa did in the depression.

Steve Gardner, Melbourne, Australia

The problem is not running out of oil, rather the problem is not being able to pump oil out of the ground fast enough to meet demand at a low price. A little research might help:

Intro:
http://globalpublicmedia.com/peak_oil_for_policy_makers

Peak Oil:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_oil

James, SSF, USA

It's best to first educate yourself to the specifics of the problem, go to wikipedia and type in "peak oil", they have a great article. Then go to google and type in the "theoildrum" that website is where true energy and oil experts post articles. You can ask them questions about oil shale and sands

James, SSF, USA

Anthony clearly doesnt know anything about oil extraction.
Shale will never scale to be a significant contributor due
to the energy and environmental inputs required. Brazil is
nothing more than speculation of what might be at this stage,
in ultra deep sea (7000 m down), a formidable challenge.

Martin , Boyle, Ireland

In response to Anthony in Charleston.Rate is everything.Shales will need higher than the current price to be economical if ever and will never replace the rate at which conventional reservoirs produce.Brazil is deep and expensive and the reserve numbers are speculative at best.

Jimmie, LaGrange,Texas, US

Behavioural economists have a term for people who commit to an irrational perspective based on faulty perception: cognitive dissonance.

Roughly: this means competing states of rationality, or the ability to know that one's actions are irrational but to act anyway. Psychiatrists call it 'akrasia'.

Daniel, London, UK

There are 2 trillion barrels of oil in the shale fields in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. Brazil just made a huge discovery off shore that would give it the 2nd largest proven crude oil reserves behind Saudi Arabia. This gloom and doom talk about peak oil is nothing but a sham !

Anthony, Charleston, WV, USA

We started running out the moment we started using oil. We live on a sphere--in space. It is finite. Question is do we want to waste this cheap energy or use it to convert society to a more sustainable lifestyle? Those who advocate business as usual are essentially calling for chaos and disaster!!!!

Cherenkov, Newton, USA

Anyone who believes "reserve" estimates at face value probably believes in Santa Claus and the tooth fairy too. These numbers are not reliable enough to justify the trust that so many economists, politicians, and citizens place in them.

Michael Graham, Guadalajara, Mexico

'Don't Panic.' It's the first helpful or intelligible thing anybody's said to me all day."

But James, if you know history (read "the last 8 yrs"), you know that governments cannot always protect their citizens.

We must hope for the best and prepare for the worst. To merely hope is foolish.

Jonathan, Boston, USA

It would be good if we could fill up our cars with reserves!

Johan Nissen, Falkirk,

Mr Simmons is not wrong. It's just a matter of when peak production will occur.

BP’s chief executive is mistaken. We are using more oil than is being found therefore we ARE running out.

Growth-dependant economies require MORE every year otherwise they collapse. Think about that!

Misha, Wellington, New Zealand

He has a point, in the 1980's OPEC countries jumped reserves and eer since they have not gone down. I doubt that OPEC they are telling us the truth and the judgement is in the $142 a barrel we are paying today.

The USA uses 20 million barrels, they have to stop it demand side.

Pete Best, Northampton, UK

Oil as an energy source? Another 40-70 years. Solar energy ? Another 60 million years. The better investment is rather obvious from that comparison.

Peter, Geneva, Switzerland

wow...so many experts on the subject...who knows until the sun descends over the horizon which in this opinion will be sooner than later

Michael Green, Houston, USA

"Former President Bush energy adviser says oil is running out" - No, he is not saying that.
As a matter of fact, Matthew Simmons's "controversial views" are in line with what BP's Tony Hayward is saying.
It all boils down to flow rates .The production infrastructure is maxed out. Period.

Saul Rosenbaum, New York,

Look at BP Statistical Review of World Energy, 2008. Use the charting tools. Look at production in top oil exporters, Saudia Arabia, Iran, Russia, Norway, UAE. Overall production now in decline. Look at consumption in same countries. Rapidly rising. Look at China and India.

Simmons is right.

Alister Hamilton, Edinburgh, UK

All we have to do is harness the vast untapped reserves of natural gas.
There are far greater quantities of natural gas than oil.

Don' t panic,its the vested interests talking up impending doom.

James C, Marbella, Espana

Off course it's running out
It started to run out as soon as they pumped up the first barrel

Steve Byrne, christchurch, UK