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The truth about alternative fuel sources
 Chances are that you've heard or read about arguments that oil and gas will soon be a thing of the past; that alternative energy sources are just around the corner. While we look forward to a more environmentally friendly source of everyday fuel for heating and automotive transportation (not to mention the financial opportunities such changes will represent), the fact is that alternatives to oil and gas are truly decades away from being viable.
Driven by concerns about the environment and supply issues related to use of oil and natural gas, people are looking at alternative sources of energy. Government initiatives and the potential for investment returns have contributed to efforts to produce hybrid and electric vehicles and attempts to develop reliable and safe hydrogen fuel cells. In addition, solar and wind power are being utilized on a small scale.
Unfortunately, none of these alternatives have yet to become viable in a commercial or practical sense for large scale use. In fact, they are so far from production reality that experts suggest it will be 20-40 years before they become commercially viable. In 2002, Ford Motor Company pulled the plug on electric car development, citing a lack of profitability. GM and Honda both shut down their once-promising divisions in 1999. Some experts claim Ford's decision marks the death of the technology.1
What are the choices?
Wind and solar power require specific environmental conditions, making them unreliable. They also require vast amounts of land and produce relatively little power given the required infrastructure.
Electric vehicles still need batteries to operate. Batteries require power from other sources for charging and create enormous environmental problems when disposed of.
Despite many years of intense development research, the hyrdogen fuel cell remains a dream, plagued by safety issues and other problems.
Methane gas, produced either by decaying marsh plants on the ground or below the seabed or by chemical biogas generators, cannot provide even a fraction of the demand required in the USA.
The US government is attempting to accelerate the use of alternative fuel sources for automobiles through consumer rebates and other initiatives. However, these will take many years to gain awareness and acceptance, and may not achieve desired goals due to long established patterns of consumer behavior. With no financially viable alternative in sight, oil and natural gas will continue to be the dominant forms of energy for many years to come.
1 Source: New Scientist
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Like the promise of a "paperless office," reality has yet to fulfill the dream. While many attempts are being made to replace oil and gas, the fact remains that none of the alternatives are viable to replace the huge demand for energy that exists today.
When a real opportunity for an alternative fuel source becomes apparent, it will yield strong investment potential, but that appears to be many years or decades away.
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