By 2050, moving from fossil fuels to renewable energy may save the globe up to $12 trillion (£10.2 trillion), according to a study by Oxford University. Based on the analysis, saying that switching swiftly to cleaner energy sources was expensive was inaccurate and pessimistic. Increasing worries about the availability of energy have driven higher gas prices. However, the researchers assert that the declining cost of renewable energy means that going green now makes economic sense. Prof. Doyne Farmer from the Oxford Martin School’s Institute for New Economic Thinking says “even if you disagree with our position on climate change, you should support it. Our main finding is that since switching to green energy will save us money, we should move forward quickly.”

The report’s conclusions are based on a simulation of how prices for fossil and renewable fuels are projected to vary in the future using historical price data. According to data for fossil fuels that spans more than 100 years from 2020, the price hasn’t changed significantly after accounting for inflation and market volatility. Less data is available because renewables have only been around for a few decades. But as a result of ongoing technological developments, the price of solar and wind energy has been falling quickly, by around 10% annually. The report’s prediction that the cost of renewable energy would continue to decline is based on “probabilistic” modeling, which makes use of information on how significant investment and economies of scale have reduced the cost of other comparable technologies.