"Energy will never be cheap again!" This was stated by Jeroen van der Veer, chairman of Shell, in a Dutch television program. 
Amsterdam, February 22, 2009 
Oil will gradually become more expensive. We expect high prices for energy within a longer period of time, as says van der Veer. According to the chairman, the growth of the world population will make the demand for energy higher, which results in higher energy prices.
Van der Veer was surprised by the rapid increase of the energy prices last year. A barrel of oil cost almost 150.00 Dollars at its peak in July 2008.
 
Nowadays, a barrel costs a little less than forty Dollars. Van der Veer noticed that investments from Shell are also lucrative against these prices. The low oil prices have a negative side-effect on the oil extraction from oil sands in Canada. To make a new investment in oil sands lucrative, a higher oil price is necessary according to the chairman.