"Cheap oil is over" says the IEA

6 November 2008

The era of cheap oil is over, according to the International Energy Agency's (IEA) World Energy Outlook report due to be published next week.

A summary of the report, which was obtained by the Financial Times, has revealed that oil prices are expected to rise to more than $100 (€77) a barrel as soon as the economy recovers.

Inflation will see the price of a barrel increase to over $200 by 2030, it warns.

The study will state that the volumes of energy supply versus consumption are "unsustainable".

"While market imbalances could temporarily cause prices to fall back, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the era of cheap oil is over," it will claim.

Oil is currently affordable for home heating oil customers with Brent crude at $60.54 a barrel and US crude at $63.92 today, compared to the prices in summer which exceeded the $140 mark.

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