Oxford University study finds that switching to 100% renewable energy by 2050 will save $12 Trillion

Transitioning to a decarbonized energy by 2050 would save the world at least $12 trillion compared to continue using fossil fuels at the current levels, according to a peer-reviewed study by Oxford University researchers.

“Past models, predicting high costs for transitioning to zero carbon energy, have deterred companies from investing and made governments nervous about setting policies that will accelerate the energy transition and cut reliance on fossil fuels. But clean energy costs have fallen sharply over the last decade, much faster than those models expected. Our latest research shows 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 energy is now the best bet not just for the planet, but for energy costs too,” says the lead author Dr. Rupert Way, a postdoctoral researcher at Oxford's Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.

The study was carried out before Russia invaded Ukraine, skyrocketing fossil fuel prices worldwide. Professor Doyne Farmer, who leads the team that conducted the study at the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School, says, “The world is facing a simultaneous inflation crisis, national security crisis, and climate crisis, all caused by our dependence on high cost, insecure, polluting, fossil fuels with volatile prices. 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.”

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Decarbonizing the energy system by 2050 could save trillions

Empirically grounded technology forecasts and the energy transition

Transition to cleaner energy could save world $12 trillion by 2050, study says