The oil shale use development plan uncovered by Postimees today will definitely trigger questions, demand explanations and birth discussions. While there’s the occasional talk of oil shale as some relic irrelevant on this globalizing globe, it’s obvious judging by the ever complicating picture that energy of our own is vital.
Let’s not forget that in Estonia, industrial oil shale mining is a century-long thing as propelled, among other things, by the fuel crisis caused by WW1. Not in vain, they call it our brown gold. In the domain, we possess unique knowhow and skills. For Estonia, the Virumaa-related industry is not limited to economic, but also to manifold security interests.
As for development plans, these are long-term documents of national planning difficult to overestimate. Regrettably, in the red-tape-Estonia of today where the state often equals little kingdoms within agencies and ministries, the complication of these is often faulty. At times, they are penned as a boring formality – resulting in round writings subject to all kinds of interpretation, not applicable in real life and destined to collect dust on some shelf. At other times, clauses are squeezed in, enabling policy dictated decisions. The new oil shale plan is both.
Regarding yearly mining, the 20 million tonne ceiling is tinkered with – by experts named the emotional limit. Considering the development of technology, a larger than that volume would soon allow meeting environmental requirements. Meanwhile, should the price prognosis included prove erroneous or outright wrong, future investments into the domain are questionable indeed.