A group of researchers say they have proved that fossils from animals and plants are not necessary for crude oil and natural gas to be generated.

This would be revolutionary - not only does it go against scientific consensus but it would also mean that new sources of oil could be found all over the globe.

“There is no doubt that our research proves that crude oil and natural gas are generated without the involvement of fossils. All types of bedrock can serve as reservoirs of oil,” said research leader Vladimir Kutcherov, professor of the Division of Energy Technology at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden.

Together with two colleagues, Kutcherov simulated the process occuring naturally in the inner layers of the earth that generates hydrocarbon - the primary component in oil and natural gas. Publishing his findings in Nature Geoscience – he says he is convinced that the process doesn’t require organic matter in the form of fossils.

As well as the evidence from these simulations, he thinks that oil reserves in Texas – 10.5km deep in some wells – are too deep for fossil remnants to have played a part in there formation. As Kutcherov sees it, this is further proof that the genesis of these energy sources can be created in ways that don’t rely on fossils.

“There is no way that fossil oil, with the help of gravity or other forces could have seeped down to a depth of 10.5km in the state of Texas, for example, which is rich in oil deposits,” he said.

As well as the revelation that the earth could be richer in oil and gas reserves than many have speculated and that they are not formed from fossils – he says his discovery has benefits for the location of fuel reserves. The team have used their research to develop a new location method to find these extra reserves. It involves dividing the globe into a finely meshed grid corresponding to fissures - so-called ‘migration channels’ - through underlying layers under the surface of the earth. Wherever these fissures meet, he says, it is suitable to drill.

This may sound too simple to be true, but Kutcherov says using this method could increase the degree of accuracy dramatically – from 20 to 70%. Since drilling for oil and natural gas is a very expensive process, the cost will be radically reduced for petroleum companies - and in the end, probably for consumers as well.
 
“The savings will be in the many billions,” said Kutcherov.