Oil is the most energy-dense and efficient fuel that can be delivered to consumers.

Context#

Critics of oil often focus on emissions while ignoring why oil became dominant in the first place: nothing else comes close to matching its combination of energy density, storability, transportability, and cost-effectiveness.

Evidence#

Energy Density: Oil Wins by a Landslide

Energy per kilogram (MJ/kg):

What this means:

• A lithium battery holds ~50x less energy per kg than gasoline
• A 60L gas tank = ~2,200 MJ of energy, weighs ~45 kg
• Equivalent battery pack = ~2,400 kg (the weight of a small car)
• This is physics, not politics

Why Energy Density Matters

For vehicles:

• More range per unit of weight
• Faster refueling (minutes vs. hours)
• No range anxiety
• Works in extreme cold and heat

For aviation:

• Jet fuel is the only viable option for commercial flight
• Batteries would need to be 50x better to work
• A battery-powered 737 couldn't take off—the batteries would be too heavy
• No alternative exists, even theoretically, for long-haul flight

For shipping:

• Container ships carry months of fuel
• Battery-powered ships would need constant recharging
• 90% of global trade depends on oil-powered vessels

Storage: The Hidden Advantage

Oil can be:

• Stored indefinitely without degradation
• Kept in simple tanks (no special conditions)
• Stockpiled for emergencies (strategic reserves)
• Transported without energy loss

Batteries:

• Degrade over time even when not used
• Require climate control
• Lose capacity with age
• Fire risk in storage

Hydrogen:

• Leaks through most containers
• Requires extreme compression or cryogenic cooling
• Embrittles metal containers
• Boils off over time in liquid form

Transport Efficiency

Moving oil:

• Pipelines: 99%+ efficiency, lowest cost
• Tanker ships: Massive quantities, minimal energy
• Rail/truck: Existing infrastructure everywhere

Moving electricity:

• Transmission losses: 5-10% over distance
• Requires massive infrastructure investment
• Cannot be "shipped" across oceans
• Grid bottlenecks limit delivery

Moving hydrogen:

• Requires 3x the energy to compress/transport as it delivers
• Pipeline infrastructure doesn't exist
• Truck transport extremely inefficient
• Losses at every stage

Refueling: Time Is Money

Fill a car with 400 miles of range:

• Gasoline: 3 minutes
• Fast EV charging: 30-60 minutes
• Standard EV charging: 8-12 hours

For commercial vehicles:

• A truck driver can refuel and go
• An EV truck loses productive hours charging
• Fleet economics heavily favor diesel

Cost to Consumer

Delivered energy cost (approximate):

• Gasoline: $0.03-0.05 per MJ
• Residential electricity: $0.05-0.10 per MJ
• Hydrogen: $0.15-0.30 per MJ (where available)

Oil delivers more energy for less money through existing infrastructure that's already paid for.

The Infrastructure Reality

Oil infrastructure:

• 150,000+ gas stations in North America
• Millions of miles of pipelines
• Refineries in every region
• Built over 100+ years, fully amortized

Replacing it would require:

• Trillions in new investment
• Decades of construction
• Entirely new supply chains
• Higher consumer costs during transition

Why Alternatives Struggle

Batteries:

• Physics limits energy density
• Improvements are incremental (3-5% annually)
• No breakthrough on horizon to match oil
• Mining requirements are enormous

Hydrogen:

• Most hydrogen is made FROM oil/gas
• "Green" hydrogen requires massive electricity
• Infrastructure essentially doesn't exist
• Efficiency losses at every step

Biofuels:

• Compete with food production
• Land use requirements enormous
• Energy return much lower than oil
• Cannot scale to replace petroleum

Analysis#

This claim is true. Oil's dominance isn't an accident of history or a conspiracy—it's physics and economics. Nothing matches oil's combination of:

1. Energy density (50x better than batteries)
2. Storability (indefinite, simple conditions)
3. Transportability (pipelines, ships, trucks)
4. Refueling speed (minutes, not hours)
5. Cost (cheapest delivered energy)
6. Infrastructure (already built, everywhere)

This is why oil powers 97% of transportation despite decades of alternatives. It's why planes fly on jet fuel and ships burn diesel. It's why your car can drive 400 miles on a tank that takes 3 minutes to fill.

Alternatives may eventually improve—but they're competing against a fuel that nature spent millions of years perfecting. Oil is liquid energy, easily stored, cheaply transported, and quickly transferred. It's not just the best fuel we have; it's the best fuel physics allows for chemical energy storage.

Understanding this isn't "pro-oil propaganda." It's respecting the reality that engineers and economists have understood for over a century. Any honest energy transition plan must acknowledge why oil is so hard to replace—and be realistic about how long it will take.