Editor’s Pitch

Just before the bubble burst on the world economy, oil prices were at an all time high, a reflection of how difficult it was to extract enough of the black stuff to literally fuel the world. This short, scary investigation shows that oil’s place in society is more pivotal, and may be more precarious than we could possibly imagine. We’ve all become heavily dependent on oil like a long-term drug addict, and no one wants to go cold turkey. This isn’t about buying an electric car to save the planet, this is about not being able to make the electric car in the first place. And if you’re in a developing country – you have far more to worry about. Time to take the red pill and see how far the rabbit hole goes…



If there’s one thing that controls the lifestyle, development, and economic welfare of the world, it’s oil. More than just the stuff you put in your car, oil underpins the manufacturer, power source, and movement of goods, people and information like no other. We may have been worrying about its ecological impact for some time, but could its sudden scarcity have a much greater impact than anyone could imagine?

PetroApocalypse Now? is a journalistic investigation by Andrew Evans into “Peak Oil”, the idea that our ability to extract oil to feed the world’s ever growing need, is about to falter. Added to this is the claim that oil reserves have been greatly exaggerated by the world’s top producing oil countries leading to a potential crisis far sooner than anyone might have predicted.

Shot over four years in 13 countries, Evan’s attempts to get expert opinion from both sides of the argument. Are OPEC lying about reserves? Will new technology improve yields and find more viable oil sites for us to stave off the problem? Are there real alternatives to oil – not just to power engines, but to replace materials which oil forms an important ingredient?

What is clear is that this isn’t a problem which will go away and that the grip of powerful organizations and vested interests make choosing a different path more complex than ever.