George Trefgarne

Even oilmen are human

Until the credit crunch sent bankers to the naughty step of capitalism, the spot was occupied by oilmen.

Until the credit crunch sent bankers to the naughty step of capitalism, the spot was occupied by oilmen. The consequence is that an exciting tale of human endeavour — how the abundant resources of the earth have been harnessed to power an era of unimagined prosperity — is often obscured by hostile forces and, it has to be said, spectacular blunders by oilmen themselves.

However, it is, if you think about it, remarkable that in the 150 years since it all began when one Colonel Drake first struck oil in Pennsylvania, a global market — designed by no one individual or authority — has grown up which keeps the energy flowing even through wars and natural disasters. It ensures that billions of people can travel widely; that we are rarely too cold or too hot; and we have light even when it is dark outside. Our ancestors would surely marvel at such technological progress.

Not that you could tell from most books on the subject, typically rather predictable and called something like Robber Barons, or Climate Crisis. The classic exception is The Prize, by a former Reagan staffer, Daniel Yergin. First published 20 years ago, The Prize is still in print today and the accompanying television series transformed the author into a sort of Kenneth Clark of oil. Yergin is apparently writing a sequel, but Tom Bower has effectively beaten him to it.

The Squeeze hardly mentions climate change — a voluminous controversy where it is philosophically impossible to come down truthfully on one side or the other. Instead, Bower describes the last two decades, taking us from when oil rose from $10 a barrel, to a record $147, before falling back again earlier this year. Nor does it really look at the future.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Keep reading with a free trial

Subscribe and get your first month of online and app access for free. After that it’s just £1 a week.

There’s no commitment, you can cancel any time.

Or

Unlock more articles

REGISTER

Comments

Don't miss out

Join the conversation with other Spectator readers. Subscribe to leave a comment.

Already a subscriber? Log in