Industrial energy costs have increased recently relative to industrial construction costs in a shift that will affect energy investment, production, and use.For at least 4 decades, energy and construction costs have changed at nearly identical rates, as shown in the trend line in Fig. 1, which plots a data series dating back to 1930. The relative increase in energy costs apparent in the 2007 data point is only the second major upward departure from the trend to have occurred during the period.In an earlier article, the author pointed to the inevitability of this shift and described a wide range of responses it would induce.1 Among those responses are the application of significantly more-...