Oil, said the IEA, will remain the single-largest fuel source, while demand for coal will grow 61% during the period, its share of total energy demand expanding from 26% to 29%.

Washington's own Energy Information Institute projects that global oil consumption will increase by a quarter until 2030 while natural gas consumption will grow by 46% and coal by 49%.

The reason that green energy will still be a minor player in coming decades is due to the great advantages of fossil fuels. They are plentiful, and they are much cheaper and more reliable than renewables.

The U.S. is overflowing with fossil fuels. With more reserves than any nation on earth, it has been described as the Saudi Arabia of coal. The EIA says there are 1.7 trillion tons of identified coal resources and 3.1 trillion tons of total coal resources.

 

"Based on U.S. coal production for 2010," says the EIA, "the U.S. recoverable coal reserves represent enough coal to last 239 years."

What if demand increases faster than the 2010 pace? Well, then we have a mere 168 years of coal left.

The U.S. is also brimming with crude.