Proceedings of The 5th International Conference on Business, Management and Finance
Year: 2022
DOI:
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The Future of Conventional Energy
Maha Al Thani
ABSTRACT:
This research explores existing literature to determine whether (or not) the world can exclusively run on renewable energy. It specifically focuses on the role (and the place) of conventional/fossil-fuel energy sources under low-carbon society. Since this century began, clean energy has been – and indeed continues to be – a critical area of research. This is because conventional fuels are unclean and destructive not just to the environment but also to human health and wellbeing. Fossil fuels release toxic fumes and huge amounts of GHGs when burned for energy – and so do the extractive methods used to access these conventional fuel sources such as fracking and tar sands. Despite the development of compelling clean and renewable energy technologies, the shift to non-conventional energy has been not only slow but also uncertain. Thus, in examining the role of conventional energy under low-carbon society, the ensuing discussion looked at the reason why fossil fuels remain the main source of energy in most places across the globe. Three reasons explain why fossil fuels are set to remain the world’s energy of choice: (1) coal, oil, and natural goals are excellent fuels, (2) they are ready-made, and (3) unlike solar and other renewables, conventional energy is well-established. Findings of the research further indicate that under a low-carbon society, conventional energy will also have a huge role because of the several institutional, technical, and socio-economic barriers hindering contemporary society from moving towards the low carbon-emission energy pathway. A general conclusion of this research is that the world will continue to run on conventional fuel energy sources for the foreseeable future.
keywords: Carbon, Energy, Environment, Renewables.