The Switch: How Solar, Storage and New Tech Means Cheaper Power for all

There's a revolution going on. Every two years, solar energy is doubling in size and falling twenty per cent in price. In places as different as India, Brazil and parts of the United States, solar is now cheaper than coal. And batteries are following the same curve. By 2030, fossil fuels - oil and gas, as well as coal - will be fighting for survival.

Why has this happened? The answer lies in the almost magical qualities of the Experience Curve which pushes costs down rapidly as production ramps up. We've known for decades that PV will get cheaper and cheaper. But the speed of The Switch has taken analysts and governments by surprise.

Energy from the sun will give us cheap, low-carbon electricity - and with new battery technologies this will be all most of the world's population needs. In northerly climes, and for transport, we need further innovations, to turn surplus summer electricity into renewable natural gas and liquid fuels that can be stored for months or even years. This, too, is happening.

The Switch is inevitable. And it is changing everything.