Solar power, once so costly it only made economic sense in spaceships, is becoming cheap enough that it will push coal and even natural-gas plants out of business faster than previously forecast.



That's the conclusion of a Bloomberg New Energy Finance outlook for how fuel and electricity markets will evolve by 2040.

The research group estimated solar already rivals the cost of new coal power plants in Germany and the US and by 2021 will do so in quick-growing markets such as China and India.

Good for the planet: Green energy such as solar power is getting cheaper. Credit:Glenn Hunt

The scenario suggests green energy is taking root more quickly than most experts anticipate. It would mean that global carbon dioxide pollution from fossil fuels may decline after 2026, a contrast with the International Energy Agency's central forecast, which sees emissions rising steadily for decades to come.