It will always be prudent to reduce the use of carbon-based energy sources by making supply chains as energy-efficient as possible, but fossil fuels remain critical in 2025. Subscribe to our weekly e-mail update Don’t miss out on the best in supply chain. Get premium resources and in-depth, comprehensive feature articles written by the industry’s top experts – delivered. More InSights Oil update: Price stability, with climate change uncertainties AI update: Decision-maker or decision-supporter? 100% uptime for renewable energy sources Revisiting Quick Response Oil Update: Still need fracking? More InSights Larry Lapide · January 7, 2025 · This is my annual update on oil that began with my first Insights column: “Is your supply chain addicted to oil?” (January/February 2007). Since, I’ve focused on the price of oil because freight costs are a sizable (and controllable) portion of supply chain costs. Also, because it appeared that oil prices would rise over time, it was obvious that supply chains would have to be more energy-efficient and much less dependent on oil. Initially, the tagline was “supply chains needed to slow down” because highly responsive chains were energy inefficient. Furthermore, once there were climate concerns, oil got a “dirty name”—as a polluting CO2 fuel—that became another important reason to squeeze oil out of supply chains. SC MR