The End of the World is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization

by Peter Zeihan

The ironic bottom line is that the United States is one of only a handful of countries that not only will not face a protracted energy crisis, but can also attempt oil and natural gas substitutes at scale. It is the developed country closest to the equator, granting it the world’s second-best opportunities for mass solar installations (Australia is far away in the top spot). It has huge swaths of windswept lands in the Great Plains, granting it the world’s best wind resources. The Americans even have an ace in the hole in terms of their oil demand: One of the by-products from most shale oil wells is a steady flow of natural gas. The Americans, and pretty much only the Americans, can use that natural gas in lieu of oil in their petrochemical systems. Add in a relatively stable and robust capital structure and secure access to lithium deposits in Australia and Chile, and the Americans can even attempt battery systems and EV rollouts with current technologies, should they so choose.