Is oil a finite resource?

Question

What proof is there that oil is a finite resource? I mean, at what point did the planet and it climatological processes stop making oil? It seems to me that the earth is an oil making machine that is constantly boiling organic matter and generating crude. I can perhaps accept that we are consuming it at a pace faster than it is being produced but I doubt that the earth stopped producing it. If you disagree please answer:

-What processes created oil in the past?

-How long did this process endure?

-When did these processes stop?

-What triggered the fundamental change in the process to make it stop?

-What raw ingredients are needed to produce crude?

-Are these ingredients no longer available?

Please provide some facts.

Thanks

Answer 1

if its used at a much faster rate than its generation, it will behave as a finite resource.  long before than our economy will suffer as the last remaining drops are pumped from the earth.

Answer 2

there is some question as to whether oil is finite or renewable

Answer 3

Oil isn't exactly "finite," but it isn't renewable either.  Trees are a renewable resource because it only takes around 100 years to grow one very tall.  This is a relatively short period of time.  Oil on the other hand takes millions of years to form.  The process is constantly happening, but not as fast as humans are using it, as you say in your question.  I think that people who call oil a "finite" resource are just misusing the term or have no idea what they're talking about.

Answer 4

no but does have the ability to regenerate over time

Answer 5

Many scientists believe that oil is a renewable resource. Check the link below.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/articl...

Answer 6

Confessions of an "ex" Peak Oil Believer

By F William Engdahl

http://www.engdahl.oilgeopolitics.net/Ge...

ak_oil___russia.html

Answer 7

technically oil is an infinite resource it is created in nature however we are using it up quicker than it is being made naturally , oil takes a very long time to occur ,so even though there will always be some it will not be ecconomic to get it and use it

Answer 8

Oil is still being created in nature, but at a much slower rate than we are consuming it.  Therefore, and technically speaking, if we use a resource faster than it can be replenished, then it will eventually run out and it is finite.  

But humans being humans, it doesn't really work that way. We will NEVER completely run out of oil. Its just a function of economics. Assuming a constant rate of consumption and no environmental problem (such as greenhouse gases) or some other factor that affects the demand, the price of oil will have to increase as the supply diminishes. That's basic economics - supply and demand determine the price. As the price goes up, energy companies will be able to recover oil from deeper reserves, smaller reserves, more remote locations, and lower grades, as well as start providing new sources at a profit. Not only that, oil companies will be motivated to carry out exploration to look for new oil and natural gas deposits and alternative energy supplies as the price goes up.

At some point the price of oil could get so high that there will no longer be any economically recoverable oil. But its more likely that the price of oil gets so high that nobody will buy it anymore, so we go back to the supply and demand fundamentals, and the price goes down. That has the direct consequence of encouraging better use of our conventional energy sources and increasing the use of alternative fuels and energy sources.

So it all comes down to affordability. People in many third world countries can't afford oil today, but in North America and Europe we are complaining but can still afford it.

There's no question we need to reduce our energy and resource demand and start making better use of our existing resources, but we will not run out of oil.  And the oil making "process" has not stopped!

As for the rest of the information and facts you are looking for, perhaps you should do your own research.