and what if petrol was at 6 euro/litre?

pickarooney

Nothingbetter2d wrote: »

wind, solar, or imported electricity from nuclear power, perhaps?

worth noting with regards to solar power if they covered just 0.3% of the sahara desert with concentrated solar panels it would provide the EU with enough power
http://inhabitat.com/worlds-largest-solar-project-sahara-desert/

Just 0.3% of the Sahara is about 30,000 square kilometres, or close to half the size of the island of Ireland, and working conditions are kind of difficult.

Bruthal

pickarooney wrote: »

Just 0.3% of the Sahara is about 30,000 square kilometres, or close to half the size of the island of Ireland, and working conditions are kind of difficult.

It would be some cable from the sahara to dublin as well.

Casillas

Being Irish I'd get grouchy, complain all around me and then do nothing.

Nothingbetter2d

robbie7730 wrote: »

It would be some cable from the sahara to dublin as well.

you dont need to lay long cables across the sea bed to export electricity.

solar energy can be harvested - turned into electricty then into microwave energy, beamed upto an orbiting satellite then back down to anywhere on earth then converted back into electricity.

see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space-based_solar_power

Chuck Stone

fryup wrote: »

100 yrs ago something like Television was unthinkable but look now

Yep.

Millions of people watching watching talentless idiots on mind numbing 'reality' and 'talent' shows. What a waste of electricity and resources and time. :pac:

sheesh wrote: »

I would start growing rapeseed and making diesel out of that

The cost of farming efficiently and distributing the produce relies heavily on oil for farm machinery and transport costs.

Land would probably be much more valuable for growing food anyway as transporting food thousands of miles would become economically inviable.

Stiffler2

faral wrote: »

hi folks
imagine this situatins - your monthly wage is 1900 euro,petrol costs 6 euro a litre and you have to spent on rent about 1000 euro/month for 2 bed aprtm.what would you do??

probably downgrade to a set of rollerblades.

Ray Palmer

A question many people who bought property in the middle of nowhere failed ask. Combined with the negative equity many find themselves in with varibale rate mortgages. Some people who are already in trouble will get in more trouble.

When people said I was mad to pay so much more for property close to the city they ignored my arguments about ever increasing fuel and commute times. Smaller cars and shorter distances will be the prevailing trend everywhere.

Bruthal

Nothingbetter2d wrote: »

you dont need to lay long cables across the sea bed to export electricity.

solar energy can be harvested - turned into electricty then into microwave energy, beamed upto an orbiting satellite then back down to anywhere on earth then converted back into electricity.

see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space-based_solar_power

Thats about space based solar collection. At present, a very long way from practical as it is, let alone for solar collection on the ground in the sahara.

zom

faral wrote: »

its 12 euro/h

Hopefully you get more with paypal. Good luck!

eth0

I'd put an electric motor on my bike.

Conversion + battery only a few 100e and get 30 mile range for a few cents of electricity

Electric car not worth it, batteries for those cost too much and dont last very long

eth0

eth0 wrote: »

I'd put an electric motor on my bike.

Conversion + battery only a few 100e and get 30 mile range for a few cents of electricity

Electric car not worth it, batteries for those cost too much and dont last very long

Possibly the best option for the future, There is unlikely to be enough rare earths available to provide batteries for all the electric cars that would be needed to replace the current fleet of ICE cars.

I don't expect petrol ever to reach €6 a litre without either massive inflation or a collapse in economic activity (that should force the price back down!).

dissed doc

Limericks wrote: »

I don't think it is us that will have to worry about that, it's the americans that will be fecked once the dollar is no longer the reserve currency :P

They have the cheapest petrol right now, but not for long I reckon.

Ireland's car dependency is the same as the US; or, maybe even more. It's not even the price of petrol at the pump, but the need to drive everywhere to get groceries, go to work, etc., . People are very very car dependent in Ireland and getting to work without bicycle lanes or groceries doubling in price due to truck deliveries and no support for local farming, etc., is a big problem.

dissed doc

dissed doc wrote: »

Ireland's car dependency is the same as the US; or, maybe even more. It's not even the price of petrol at the pump, but the need to drive everywhere to get groceries, go to work, etc., . People are very very car dependent in Ireland and getting to work without bicycle lanes or groceries doubling in price due to truck deliveries and no support for local farming, etc., is a big problem.

We'll see a return of the mobile shops, banks & libraries that used to go round the sticks back in the "olden days", well up until the 1960s or 70s. Either that or a lot of enforced car pooling of the kind that's common in many "poorer" Central European countries.

Liam Byrne

Tazz T wrote: »

If petrol was heading towards €6 a litre, you can bet the government would (at the last minute) be scrambling over itself investing in renewables and a network of electric car charging points (like the UK is doing) and people would be running out buying electric cars - things that should be happening NOW.

This is going to happen. Why aren't we doing it now instead of complaining that Petrol is taxed too much.

Probably before that someone will figure out that it's cheaper to convert and run on vegetable oil.

Because most people don't have the cash to splash out on a new car

Because the range (i.e. distance travellable before recharge) of electric cars is largely crap

Because the amount that you'd save over 5 years would barely offset the initial outlay.

gigino

faral wrote: »

tell you what
Im Polish, working here as receptionist in one Dublin`s hotel, I earn 1860/month which is ok comparing to my friends in other hotels.I was doing the same in Poland and my wage was 1800 zlotys. It doesnt matter what is the current convertion factor versus euro.All I want you to say is that for that many you have almost nothning in Poland.petrol is 6 zlotys a litre....(thats why I was asking what you think about that) rent is 1000 or 900 zlotys a month (in outskirts of krakow),dont mention bills and food.and this is right in the middle of Europe

good point. It makes me wonder if wages are still too high in Ireland, considering we are being bailed out by the IMF etc.

eth0

Liam Byrne wrote: »

Because most people don't have the cash to splash out on a new car

Because the range of electric cars is largely crap

Because the amount that you'd save over 5 years would barely offset the initial outlay.

The amount youd save over 5 years could go straight toward the new battery pack and you still wouldnt have enough.

eth0

Rural places wont be so badly hit as you might think. It will be back to the days of shopping once a week or every two weeks. People ripping up that bland looking lawn outside the celtic tiger house to grow a few spuds, local shops that closed during the 'good' times coming back. Children walking to school instead of getting fat. More people going to the Farmers market instead of tesco.

I'd stilll prefer not to pay 6e for a litre of petrol though, despite all these good things

gigino

gigino wrote: »

good point. It makes me wonder if wages are still too high in Ireland, considering we are being bailed out by the IMF etc.

You could argue that point about the whole "western" economy, but it isn't really relevant as all the productive work has been outsourced to the third world there petrol is an expensive fuel, and valued as such. No round trips to town for one hamburger for them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg7OsZyHMX4