The world is heavily dependent on oil for energy. Do you think a future resource will take oil’s place? Why do you think this?

Most would agree that oil will not remain the world’s principal energy source indefinitely. With major breakthroughs in humanity’s ability to harvest power from the sun, I argue that solar power will one day become a cheaper and healthier alternative to petrol. This will be shown viable by looking at the falling price of solar energy per watt against the price of oil and the tremendous improvements to solar technology that have been made over the past few years. Firstly, the amount of energy produced by oil is almost equal to that produced by solar wafers. For example, a recent study published in Scientific America magazine predicted that the rising price of oil energy and the falling price of solar energy would meet in 2020. What this means is that from 2020 onwards, it would be more economical for a person to fuel their car using solar energy than it would using petrol. As economic forces are so fundamental to the day-to-day choices of the masses, it is clear that solar energy will take the place of oil as humanity’s next major energy resource. In addition to this, as solar technology develops it is becoming a much more refined energy producer. For instance, traditional solar panels were large, square boards that had to be facing the sun directly to harvest energy. Today, solar collectors come in all shapes and can be contoured to fit a range of product designs, from the rounded exterior of a car to the back of an iPhone. Usage trends such as these are yet another reason why solar energy is fit to take over oil as the world’s top energy source. After looking at both its increasingly competitive price and versatility, it is clear that solar power will come to fulfil humanity’s energy needs in place of oil. For the sake of the world’s wellbeing, I hope this transfer happens soon.