Solar photovoltaics on course to dominate energy markets
A new study suggests that solar power has crossed a ‘tipping point’ and is likely to become the main source of energy in the coming decades.
Based on a data-driven model of technology and economics, the study found that solar photovoltaics is likely to become the dominant power source before 2050.
The report cautions that four ‘barriers’ could hamper this, namely the creation of stable power grids, financing solar in developing economies, capacity of supply chains, and political resistance from regions that lose jobs.
The researchers said policies resolving these barriers may be more effective than price instruments such as carbon taxes in accelerating the clean energy transition.
The study, led by Exeter University and University College London, is part of the Economics of Energy Innovation and System Transition (EEIST) project, funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF).
In a statement, Dr Femke Nijsse from Exeter’s Global Systems Institute said: “The recent progress of renewables means that fossil fuel-dominated projections are no longer realistic. In other words, we have avoided the ‘business as usual’ scenario for the power sector.
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