Fossil fuels, including oil, natural gas and coal, are formed by the buried remains of ancient organisms, under heat and pressure. Fossil fuels are integral to technology, economy, politics and global dominance.
Coal supplies just over a third of global electricity generation, though it's the most carbon-intensive fossil fuel. Natural gas provides about 23% of the world's electricity and is the third most-used energy source globally.
Up to 30% of worldwide energy comes from oil. Fossil fuel extraction and rising use continues to affect environment, world politics and energy sustainability.
Otherwise, wood accounts for about 6%, wind power 7% and solar power 2 to 8%. Hydropower provides 15% of world electricity use. These methods are often used in combination.
About Fossil Fuels
Fossil fuels are natural resources derived from ancient remains of plants and animals. Over millennia, heat and pressure convert them to energy-rich coal, oil, and natural gas. They're created largely of carbon and hydrogen.
Coal: Formed primarily from plant matter in swampy environments, coal is a solid fuel ranked by its carbon content and energy density (e.g., anthracite, bituminous, lignite).
Oil (Petroleum): Originating from microscopic marine organisms, oil is a liquid hydrocarbon mixture. It's versatile and easily transported.
Natural Gas: Mostly methane, natural gas is formed from the same process as oil but under higher temperatures. It's a cleaner-burning fossil fuel than coal or oil, but still a significant greenhouse gas contributor.
Fossil fuels occur in geological formations worldwide. The two main locations for oil and natural gas are sedimentary rock formations beneath the Earth's surface.
The largest oil reserves are in Middle East, which has over 48% of the world's oil. There are also substantial reserves in North America, Russia, and Venezuela.
Coal is more geographically widespread. Notable reserves exist in the US, China, India, and Australia. US has over 248 billion tons of coal reserves. The UK is absent from the list due to its stringent and successful efforts to eliminate coal production and use.
Fossil Fuels: Production & Consumption
Coal: Large reserves are in US, Russia, China, Australia and India. China, India and US are the largest coal consumers in the world.
Oil: Major oil-producing regions include the Middle East (Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq), Russia, US and Venezuela. Largest oil consumers are the US and China, followed by India, Russia and Japan.
Natural Gas: Russia, Iran, Qatar, the US, and Turkmenistan have the largest proven reserves of natural gas. The US is world's largest natural gas consumer, using 920 billion cubic meters of natural gas in 2023.
Fossil fuels are located in a variety of geological formations worldwide. The two main locations for oil and natural gas are sedimentary rock formations beneath the Earth's surface.
Coal deposits, on the other hand, are more geographically widespread. Notable reserves exist in China, India, and Australia. Middle North America (US) alone has over 248 billion tons of proven coal reserves.
Extraction
Coal Mining: Can be surface mining (strip mining) or underground mining. Surface mining removes topsoil and rock layers to expose the seam, using dragline and track shovels.
Oil Extraction: requires drilling wells, sometimes with advanced techniques like hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to access shale oil and gas.
Natural Gas Extraction: Similar to oil, it often relies on fracking techniques.
Fracking is the injection of high-pressure fluid into underground rock formations, releasing trapped gas to increase output and profits.
Refinement
Crude oil is refined in facilities, using distillation to separate different components by their boiling points. This results in products like gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.
Natural gas is processed to remove impurities and enable its use for heating and electricity generation.
Coal can be converted into coke, a main ingredient in steel manufacturing. Coke is a hard grey porous fuel with high carbon content, made by heating coal or petroleum in the absence of air. An important industrial product, it's used mainly in iron ore smelting, but also as fuel in forges and stoves.
Products and Uses
Fossil fuels power almost every aspect of modern life:
Electricity Generation: Coal, natural gas, and oil are burned in power plants to generate electricity.
Transportation: Gasoline and diesel fuels power cars, trucks, ships, and airplanes.
Heating: Natural gas and heating oil are used to heat homes and buildings.
Manufacturing: Fossil fuels are raw materials for plastics, chemicals, and other industrial products.
Agriculture
Fertilizers, pesticides, and machinery rely heavily on fossil fuels. For instance fertilizers with nitrogen need natural gas during production.
The Haber-Bosch process combines atmospheric nitrogen with hydrogen sourced from natural gas to produce ammonia. Plants need nitrogen but can't take it up directly. Nitrogen fixing bacteria do this work in nature.
Ammonia is a nitrogen source plants can take up. This process needs high temperatures and pressure, making it energy-intensive and dependent on combustion of fossil fuels for the necessary energy.
Environment & Health
Climate Change: Burning fossil fuels releases greenhouse gases (primarily carbon dioxide) into the atmosphere, trapping heat and driving global warming. This leads to rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and disruptions to ecosystems.
Air Pollution: Burning fossil fuels releases pollutants that contribute to smog, acid rain, and respiratory problems.
Water Pollution: Oil spills, fracking wastewater, and coal mining runoff contaminate water sources.
Habitat Destruction: Mining and drilling activities can destroy habitats and disrupt ecosystems.
Public Health: Air and water pollution from fossil fuels contributes to health problems like respiratory illnesses, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
Carbon Sequestration & Fossil Fuels
Natural underground structures emptied of fossil fuels are considered for long-term storage in carbon sequestration. In the Norwegian North Sea Sleipner project, CO2 is captured and injected under the sea bed.
Carbon dioxide is also injected into rock to improve oil yields, displacing unreachable product to make it available.
Politics, War, and Commerce
Possession of fossil fuel resources strongly influence global politics and economics. Countries rich in these products wield power on the world stage.
Geopolitical tensions erupt over resource control. For example, the Gulf War (1990 - 1991) is partially driven by conflicts related to oil-rich regions.
Resource Control: Competition for control of oil and gas reserves has been a major driver of geopolitical tensions and wars, particularly in the Middle East.
Domestically, countries have political problems linked to fossil fuel resource management. Legislation attempts to address energy policy and carbon taxes.
The fossil fuel industry has considerable influence on government policies through lobbying and campaign contributions. On a broad scale, the Paris Agreement of 2016 hopes to reduce hazards related to use of fossil fuels.
The only countries which have not signed are Iran with the most world emissions; Libya and Yemen. In 2022, Iran produces 696 million metric tons (Mt CO2), or 2.04% of world total emissions, a 123% increase since 2000.
Although China initially signs the agreement it reneges in 2023. In that year emissions measure 11.4 metric tons, the highest of any country's output.
Russia signs the agreement but makes no financial contribution. Its efforts are currently hindered by the Ukraine War. North Korea signs, but then exports natural resources illegally, with China's help, in response to sanctions over nuclear expansion.
Energy Security: Nations seek energy security, reducing reliance on foreign sources of fossil fuels, often diversifying energy sources.
The fossil fuel industry generates $3.3 trillion in annual revenue and provides millions of jobs. Large companies like ExxonMobil and BP control most fossil fuel supplies and provide major funding.
Technologies such as robotic process automation, artificial intelligence, natural language processing and machine learning has an effect on the job market.
Robot and AI technology are expected to reduce the oil and gas workforce by up to 30%. In the upstream sector, or exploration and production, 50% of jobs will be automated in the next 20 years.
Fossil Fuel Facts
Peak Oil Theory: The theory oil production will eventually reach a peak and then decline is a recurring concern. While tech advances have extended the timeline, the finite nature of oil resources remains a reality.
Alternative Energy Sources: The need to reduce reliance on fossil fuels drives development of renewable energy sources like solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal. Geothermal by taps into heat stored in the Earth's crust, where hot water or steam is naturally found in underground reservoirs.
Countries worldwide are increasingly investing in solar and wind energy. In 2021, the combination of wind and solar accounts for 7 - 10% of global electricity production.
Carbon Pricing: Policies like carbon taxes and cap-and-trade systems are designed to make polluters pay for the environmental costs of their emissions, hoping to motivate cleaner energy sources.
Finite Resources: Fossil fuels are non-renewable. Estimates show global oil reserves may be depleted in the next 50 years at the current consumption rate.
Global Emissions: The fossil fuel industry is a factor in acceleration of climate change, responsible for 70% of carbon emissions since 1970.
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