The world faces a shortfall of oil in five years, so companies should invest in alternative energy now, says billionaire entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson.

“Five years from now, demand for oil will exceed supply,” he said at the Clinton Global Initiative meeting.

“Very big oil reserves are now getting depleted. You have China, India, South America, Africa grew by 5 percent last year.” So oil demand is strong in these places and even in the west, despite the recession.

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That means demand for clean energy will be huge, he said. “If we’re not going to have yet another nasty recession in five years time as a result of soaring oil prices, we have to get out there and invest in alternative fuels.”

In addition to solving our energy problems, investing in alternative energy is a good business proposition, just as President Barack Obama noted in his election campaign, he said.

“I would urge many more companies to put a percentage of their profits toward investing in this sector,” he said.

And Branson isn’t just talking about energy companies.

“If all the major corporations, instead of just being a cola company, or a shoe company, or a software company, if they could just put a percentage of their profits in this area, it would make an enormous difference.”