Energy Sources

1

• World Coal Trade
• Coal is an awkward fuel to handle bulky, heavy,
  irregular shape and dirty. But it is widely found
  throughout the world. Reserves may last 150
  years.
• In the 19c industries moved to where the
  coalfields were, rather than moving coal to them.
  (Nearly all Britains large conurbations are on
  top of coalfields except London thats where
  the factories grew up)
• Two developments in the later 20c caused coal to
  become an international fuel
• Vast open-cast mines allowing coal to be
  extracted cheaply
• Bulk coal-carrier ships which could cut the cost
  of transporting coal from one continent to
  another.
• As a result, coal is now moved around the world
  from areas of surplus Australia, S. Africa,
  Poland, to areas which are in energy shortage
  China, Japan, etc. especially NICs

Fun Fact Europes largest coal-fired
power-station Drax, which is on top of the
Yorkshire coalfield, actually imports coal by
ship along the Humber from Poland as it can be
mined from there and transported to Drax more
cheaply than it can be obtained from the deep
collieries and high-wage mines of the Yorkshire
coalfield next door.
2
What do you notice about the worlds top 5 coal
consuming countries?
Is the world trade in coal likely to Increase in
the future or decrease? And why?
List the countries which are net coal importers
(consume more than they produce) in rank
order
List the countries which are net coal exporters
(produce more than they consume) in rank
order
3
Which continent will have very few coal-fired
power stations and what is it likely to use for
its energy supplies instead?
4

• World Oil Trade
• Oil is the most versatile and widely used world
  energy source. Used as petrol, diesel or kerosene
  or converted into Electricity.
• It is used to heat homes, factories, move goods
  (transport) and make a variety of products
  plastics, fertilizer..
• It is easy to transport by pipeline, ship, petrol
  lorry or train.
• Production is dominated by a few countries which
  were LEDCs until the 1970s focused on the
  Middle East
• Consumption is dominated by the wealthiest
  industrial nations
• This leads to a flow of oil revenue (money) from
  MEDCs to a few LEDCs which have rapidly grown
  rich as a result (Saudi Arabia, Bahrain.)
• Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries
  (OPEC) aims to keep the price of oil high by
  restricting their own production and agreeing
  high prices amongst themselves to gain maximum
  income. They raised the oil price twice in the
  1970s leading to economic problems in importing
  countries like the USA

What do you notice about the main consumers of
oil from these maps?
5
Draw a vertical bar to represent oil reserves for
the top 10 producers scale Icm 20 billion
barrels
6
(No Transcript)
7

• Oil prices go down if
• New oil supplies are discovered increasing the
  amount available
• There is falling demand due to economic problems
  in MEDCs
• Oil producing countries increase their production
  to get more income
• OPEC countries agree amongst themselves to
  increase production
• People choose to limit their energy use by buying
  energy-efficient cars

• Oil prices go up if
• There is a shortage of oil in the ground
• There is high demand leading to a shortage of
  supply
• Oil producing countries are at war
• OPEC countries agree amongst themselves to reduce
  production
• OPEC countries agree amongst themselves to raise
  their prices

8
Global Uranium Producers
9

• World Uranium Trade
• Uranium is a metal which is mined to form the
  basis of nuclear fuel rods. It is radioactive.
• It wasnt seen as valuable until the 1940s and
  the development of atom bombs. Uranium is the
  basis for nuclear weapons.
• Uranium is not found in many places around the
  world. Australia and Canada produce most.
• Most uranium goes for nuclear power-station fuel
  in MEDCs. These expensive power-stations are too
  costly for most LEDCs
• International trade in uranium is tightly
  controlled because of its danger in producing
  nuclear weapons.
• Some LEDCs/ NICs are trying to obtain uranium
  for peaceful nuclear power stations such as
  Iran and North Korea. But many MEDCs are
  suspicious that this is an excuse to convert the
  nuclear fuel into weapons-grade plutonium and
  create their own nuclear bombs.
• Iran is at present developing its first nuclear
  power station for peaceful energy using Russian
  help. Many western countries are worried they
  want it to develop a nuclear weapon. Israel has
  said it will bomb any nuclear power station which
  starts operating as they worry they will be
  attacked. Iran has some of the worlds largest
  oil reserves.

10
European Gas Trade

• Gas is a very popular fuel at present because
• It is easy to transport by pipeline or as a
  liquid (LPG)
• It has been relatively cheap
• It doesnt generate as much CO2 or pollution as
  coal or oil
• Supplies are generally good and can continue for
  30 years or so
• Russia has vast amounts of natural gas and has
  been supplying more and more of Europe since the
  decline of communism in the early 1990s. Many
  European countries rely on Russian gas for home
  heating and industry.

Britain has its own gas supplies in the North Sea
but these are running low. As a result an
undersea pipeline has just been built between
Norways gas fields and Easington to supply the
UK up till 2025
11
Russia has stopped gas supplies to Europe twice
in recent years. It says that Ukraine is not
paying them enough for its gas and so Russia
stopped supplying it. But the gas pipeline also
feeds other European countries and they stopped
getting their gas supplies. Both times there has
been a crisis it has been winter. Russia
re-started gas flows, but said Ukraine must not
use any of the gas passing through it. Places
like Romania said they still werent receiving
gas. Russia said it was because Ukraine was
siphoning off their gas as it passed through
the Ukraine. Ukraine denied this and said Russia
had never restarted supplies. Russia used to
own Ukraine as part of the USSR. It has never
been friendly to it since it broke away and
declared independence in 1992.
12
What are the consequences for European countries
if they have energy conflict with Russia?
What are the consequences for Russia if it has
repeated energy conflict with other European
countries?
13
International Energy Conflicts
Conflict with other countries because..(hint
carbon emission)
China opens one new coal-fired power station each
week in its drive for growth
Conflict with other countries because..(hint
nuclear safety)
Iran secures deal to import Uranium from South
Africa
Conflict with other countries because..(hint
price of oil..effect on the economy)
Saudi Arabia halves Oil production for the year.
Says it wants to save resources
14
Energy TNCs Trans-National Companies

• Some of the worlds biggest TNCs are involved
  in the Energy Trade.
• Companies such as BP, Britains biggest
  company, Exxon-Mobil, Shell, Total make
  billions of dollars in profit each year by
  controlling much of the flow of oil from
  getting it out of the ground to selling it in
  their own garages
• They can influence the price of oil by finding
  new reserves (price can go down), or reducing
  production from existing oil reserves (price will
  go up).
• Because oil demand and use is closely linked to
  development as countries economically develop,
  their demand for oil goes up and TNCs have more
  customers.

15

• BP Activities
• Exploration seeking new oil reserves.
  Geologists inspect likely rock formations often
  in very difficult conditions (deserts, deep
  oceans, polar regions as most of the oil in
  easy locations has already been discovered. For
  similar reasons most exploration is now in LEDCs
• Drilling working with the governments of
  different countries for the right to extract the
  oil. BP will pay oil revenues to the host
  country for the right to extract its oil. BP
  works in many countries at the same time so if
  there are problems in one country they have oil
  coming out of the ground in other countries.
• Transport BP moves crude (unrefined) oil all
  over the world to oil refineries, by pipeline,
  oil tanker or oil lorries. It rarely refines it
  in the country where it extracts it.

16

• BP Activities contd
• Refining crude oil is heated to give different
  products at different temperatures kerosene,
  petrol, diesel, fuel-oil, bitumen, tar. The Oil
  refineries are the most profitable part of the
  operation so BP likes to locate its refineries
  in safe countries where production is likely to
  be uninterrupted such as the USA, Europe,
  Japan, Australia and where demand is highest
  ie in MEDCs
• Transport the refined products are transported
  direct to customers often by road tanker such
  as petrol to garages.
• Sales BP sells its oil products to many other
  companies but has its own outlets too, such as
  BP garages.
• Research BP is involved in researching
  alternative energy supplies for when oil supplies
  run out. It is researching energy-efficient jet
  engines which use less oil as well as solar cars
  and getting energy from fuel cells, and solar
  panels.

17
Is it good to have BP operating in your country?

• There may by considerable pollution from the
  drilling operations, tanker filling and pipeline
  leaks
• Most of the available jobs will be low-skill,
  low-pay. BP will reserve most skilled jobs for
  its own workers
• A few of your people may become very rich
  whilst others remain poor leading to unrest
  amongst your population.
• Your oil supplies may get used up faster than
  you want them to be.
• You might be invaded by neighbouring countries
  to get hold of your oil.
• If the world price of oil goes down you could
  find you make less money than you need if you
  raised your spending in the good years.

• You will get an income from selling the
  exploration and drilling rights to BP
• You will get an income from the sale of oil from
  BP
• Jobs will be created in the drilling and
  transport departments
• Roads and ports may be improved by BP to they
  can operate effectively
• You will be involved in international trade
  and could use the links with MEDCs to develop
  other exports so they stay friendly with you
  and your oil.

18
Nigeria Oil Nightmare. The Niger Delta, a
region the size of England, is littered with
violence and gas flares - the offshoot of oil
extraction - whose roar and heat you can feel for
hundreds of metres around. (See BBC report) The
flares have become symbols of the region and the
paradox that exists in an area where you find one
of the world's richest oil regions alongside some
of the poorest people. People here blame the
fallout from the oil industry for their ruined
environment, ill health and unemployment. On the
waterfront at Port Harcourt, the city at the
heart of the oil industry, we found slums where
people live without running water and
electricity, and miles from the nearest school or
clinic. No wonder many are angry. One woman told
us "We are suffering. We don't have jobs. They
make so much money with oil, but we don't see
it." Shootouts and stolen oil The maze of
waterways makes policing the delta incredibly
difficult. With unemployment at 90, many people
of the Delta are tempted to join the criminal
gangs who terrorise the area, kidnapping foreign
oil workers and launching raids on oil platforms
(see BBC report)