The Faded Mirror

I’ve been mulling the latest Solution to the Energy Crisis over in my mind ever since I first heard about it a few weeks ago.  Texan oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens has been criss-crossing the country shilling for his new program to remake America’s energy infrastructure and eliminate dependence on foreign oil. 

The Pickens’ Plan itself is rather simple, which translates to feasible, unlike other wacky ideas.  It doesn’t rely on biofuels, which are economically troubling and possibly a net energy loser.  Nor does it count on pie-in-the-sky “alternative energy” technology, which simply does not exist.  No, it’s actually a rather clever shifting of resources that might actually work.

To put it simply, Mr Pickens wants to build a zillion windmills in South Central United States to generate electricity.  This extra electrical generation capacity will be used to replace power from natural gas fired generators, which will be scaled back.  The extra natural gas will be used to fuel cars and trucks, thus reducing the amount of oil the US needs to consume.  The balance of America’s oil needs then would be met with the domestic supply.

It sounds reasonable, on the face of it.  The workability of the plan breaks down to three major questions:  Can wind powered generators replace natural gas fired generators?  And, can natural gas replace gasoline as the major fuel source for automobiles?  Lastly, is the amount of gasoline saved enough to eliminate foreign imports?  This is quite a lot to chew on, so I think I’ll breakit down to a series of posts.  If there’s enough interest, I might even get to taking a look at the third question someday….