Nearly half the world’s electricity will come from renewable energy by 2050 as costs of wind, solar and battery storage continue to plummet, according to a report by energy research group BloombergNEF.
The report said the titanic shift over the next three decades will come as electricity demand increases 62 per cent and investors pump US$13.3 trillion into new projects.
BNEF said wind, solar and batteries are poised to enable the power sector to meet its share of emission cuts required under the Paris climate agreement, at least until 2030.
After that, nations will need other technologies to make deeper cuts at a reasonable cost.
By 2050, solar and wind will supply almost 50 per cent of the world’s electricity, with hydro, nuclear and other renewable energy resources providing another 21 per cent.
Coal will be the biggest loser in the power sector, with its share of global generation plunging from 37 per cent today to 12 per cent in 2050.
Oil giant BP has also laid out its 2019 Energy Outlook, predicting renewables generating about 30 per cent of power by 2030 – but adds that renewables could hit 50 per cent by 2040.
