Paradigmskifte i energiutbudet – från överflöd till knapphet

Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, the western society has been transformed by, and dependant on, cheap and abundant energy. With respect to today’s changing conditions, we might have reached the end on this long and prosperous journey. Today’s global energy consumption consists of more than four fifths of fossil fuels. These fuels are not unlimited, and will consequently constrain the supply side of the price mechanism which in turn will result in price spikes. This thesis treats a regression model that concludes if, and how big, the impact of growth in energy consumption has on economical growth, measured in GDP. The energy consumption is divided in six different types of energy, to see how much a price increase in a specific energy resource will affect the GDP. The model measures 23 European countries between 1975 and 2011