He offered an analysis of the prospect for oil prices, the implications for global growth and inflation, and prescriptions for new measures by both producing and consuming countries. This one is building. There are many indicators of such a crisis happening soon. Physical oil production facilities are aging. Refining capacity is not being expanded because the small companies who increasingly own the US refining system cannot put money into it the way major oil companies could in the past.
Electricity transmission continues to be inefficient.
Assets are being transferred from large established oil companies to small insignificant companies who may not be efficient during recession. The whole system has become more fragile as big oil companies carry less inventory and cannot absorb shocks well. Mergers in the oil industry are making prices volatile. Demand for cleaner fuels is limiting global trade in petroleum products. The oil and auto industries are locking horns on policy, as each tries to push costs of regulations onto the other.