According to the latest BP Statistical Review of World Energy, total global reserves, by fossil fuel, are now:
Coal - 1,139 billion tonnes
Natural Gas - 187 trillion cubic meters
Crude Oil - 1,707 billion barrels
While these volumes may seem large at a glance, at today's level of extraction and production rates, BP's estimated proved reserves*, by fossil fuel, would be exhausted as follows:
Coal - year 2169
Natural Gas - year 2068
Crude Oil - year 2066
BP dutifully acknowledges the abundance of factors that could easily alter these projections, but these factors do not alter the global policy imperitive to support sustainable fossil fuel extraction and development. All we need now is to define "sustainable" against ever changing market, political, and social conditions.
* Estimated years of extraction-remaining are estimated as the ratio of proved reserves to production per year.
Sources: Crude Oil Reservs, Natural Gas Reservs, Coal Reservs, Crude oil prices, Natural Gas prices, Coal prices, Historical Energy Statistics.
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