Crude oil demand has been slipping, with the markets witnessing prices plummet 40%, reveals a Forbes magazine article

Falling to $51.12. Levels near equal to the lows of 2009, has drawn attention towards possible renewable energy alternatives; “Plummeting oil prices show just how unpredictable the global cost of fossil fuels…. is one of the reasons why it makes more sense to make the transition from fossil fuels to renewables.” says Rob Norris, Renewable UK energy spokesman.

Chrstiana Figueres, United Nations Climate Chief, also echoed a similar sentiment; “ Plummeting oil prices show just how unpredictable the global cost of fossil fuels can be….It is one of the reasons why it makes more sense to make the transition from fossil fuels to renewable.”

Stable sustainability?

Oil price instability, increasingly counterbalanced by growing demand and stability from renewable energy, has been cited as “one of the main reasons’ that makes renewable energy, which has a predictable cost of fuel, comparatively appealing” by UN Chief Christiana Figueres.

Advance planning and knowledge are central to the strength of renewable markets, with reliance on auction models, factoring in of future costs, via the introduction of new “contracts of difference” and the planning of utility scale clean energy plants far in advance.

But the tendency for public perception to interpret oil prices as reflective of overall energy prices weakens renewable energy stocks and can, potentially, damage long term demand.

Development of new technologies and bringing them to market via cost reductions are essential to breaking these perceptions. With inroads already having been made in this regard.