The world must continue to extract oil and gas or civilization will crumble, Tesla CEO and founder Elon Musk said on Monday.
“Realistically I think we need to use oil and gas in the short term, because otherwise civilization will crumble,” Musk said to reporters at an energy conference in Stavanger, Norway. “I think some additional exploration is warranted at this time,” he said when asked if oil producer Norway should continue to drill for fossil fuels.
“One of the biggest challenges the world has ever faced is the transition to sustainable energy and to a sustainable economy. That will take some decades to complete,” he explained.
The CEO of the top EV manufacturer noted that offshore wind power generation in the North Sea, combined with stationary battery packs, could become a key source of energy that could provide a strong, sustainable energy source in winter.
Musk, who has repeatedly warned about how low birth rates pose a danger to civilization, also said the world is facing a “baby crisis.”
“One of my less obvious things to be concerned about is the birth rate, and I think it’s important that people have enough babies to support civilization so that we don’t dwindle away,” Musk said.
