Foundational Fuels of the 21st Century: Evolving Socio-Economics of Sustainable Energy Systems

The last few years saw the end of the commodity super-cycle, the gradual fall in oil and gas prices, the carbon crunch and the wide-ranging revolution that is going on in technology, often termed Industry 4.0. Rapid digitization, which is taking over all areas of the industry and society, including transportation, means that energy in general will be increasingly electric. How the electricity will be produced, stored, distributed and utilized will depend on the acceleration of this change and the bare realities of economics. Three fuels assume importance as foundational fuels in this scenario - natural gas, uranium and renewable resources. This paper will discuss the socio-economics of energy transformation, the comparative advantages and disadvantages, especially focusing on the role of nuclear energy in the post Paris Agreement era. (author)