Even if oil consumption reaches a peak and then starts to fall, the world will still need large quantities of oil for many decades to come. “Global oil demand is likely to continue growing for a period, driven by rising prosperity in fast-growing developing economies,” they wrote in a paper published on Monday. “But that pace of growth is likely to slow over time and eventually plateau, as efficiency improvements accelerate and a combination of technology advances, policy measures and changing social preferences lead to an increasing penetration of other fuels in the transportation sector.” The implication is that consumption is likely to reach a maximum at some point and then start to fall, though the timing and magnitude of the peak are highly uncertain and very sensitive to assumptions. And even once demand has peaked, consumption is unlikely to drop sharply, the authors argue, given the inherent advantages […]