A speedy international shift from fossil fuels to renewable power by 2050 would save the world a minimum of £10trn, in response to new evaluation.
The quicker we dump fuel and oil, the extra we’ll save, researchers on the University of Oxford mentioned, including that the concept going inexperienced will likely be costly is “just wrong”.
The peer-reviewed examine, revealed within the journal Joule, used information on power prices going again a number of many years, in addition to hundreds of eventualities of the price of switching to zero carbon energy.
The researchers discovered that wind and photo voltaic power, in addition to battery storage, had change into far cheaper than had been initially anticipated, due to higher expertise and economies of scale.
Fossil gasoline costs have fluctuated extensively, pushed by international political and financial occasions.
And the price of nuclear has persistently elevated over the past 50 years to the purpose the place it’s unlikely to be cost-competitive with renewables.
The examine concludes that renewables are actually typically cheaper than fossil fuels – and that price benefit will speed up.
Rupert Way, the lead writer from the University’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, mentioned: “Scaling up key green technologies will continue to drive their costs down – and the faster we go, the more we will save.
“Accelerating the transition to renewable power is now one of the best wager not only for the planet, however for power prices too.”
Professor Doyne Farmer, from the Oxford Martin School, and one other of the researchers, mentioned: “There is a pervasive misconception that switching to clean, green energy will be painful, costly and mean sacrifices for us all.
“But that is simply fallacious.”
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Gas and oil prices have soared since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, causing a global spike in inflation.
The new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, last week announced the government would issue around 100 licences to explore for more North Sea gas and oil, and lift the ban on fracking.
But the researchers warn that governments should redouble efforts to move away from “costly, insecure, fossil fuels.”
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Professor Farmer said: “The world is dealing with a simultaneous inflation disaster, nationwide safety disaster, and local weather disaster, all attributable to our dependence on excessive price, insecure, polluting, fossil fuels with unstable costs.
“This study shows ambitious policies to accelerate dramatically the transition to a clean energy future as quickly as possible are, not only, urgently needed for climate reasons, but can save the world trillions in future energy costs, giving us a cleaner, cheaper, more energy secure future.”
Source: information.sky.com”