No panacea

Oil's alternatives still thrived as crude prices fell and Opec's deal is likelier to help than hinder them

On the face of it, a rise in oil prices - and the associated increase in exploration and production activity that should follow—is probably a blow to alternative forms of energy, at least on the margins. A more sustainable oil industry and beefier investments in oil and gas projects could even draw investment away from renewables or, say, electric-vehicle (EV) development. But don't overestimate this. The shift from fossil fuels to alternative energy has already built enough momentum in some sectors to resist much of a fightback from a re-emboldened oil industry. What Opec, Donald Trump, the Chinese government or anyone else does is largely just noise. Green energy has the wind behind it whe