Transition economic impact could echo 1970s oil shock - PIIE
Rise in carbon prices required by 2030 could serve as negative supply shock to global economy of similar magnitude to 1973-74 quadrupling of oil prices, thinktank says
The global energy transition required to avoid cataclysmic climate change will now need to be abrupt rather than gradual following decades of policy procrastination. This could potentially cause a period of slow economic growth combined with high price inflation, or "stagflation", akin to the one following the 1973-74 oil price shock, according to a paper by Washington-based thinktank Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE). “Reasonable optimism about the long-run effects of the transition to a carbon-neutral economy is no reason to overlook transition costs,” Jean Pisani-Ferry, an economist at PIIE says in the paper. “These costs, while bearable, are likely to be significant.”

Also in this section
14 May 2025
Deal with Calpine shows oil and gas major ExxonMobil has no intention of curbing its CCS ambitions, despite US policy risks and broader scepticism over the energy transition
13 May 2025
Volatile tariffs add new risks for a sector already struggling to achieve economies of scale
30 April 2025
State administrations are using a flawed metric to justify green energy projects
29 April 2025
Spain’s unprecedented blackout highlighted the risk for green hydrogen producers with exposure to Europe’s creaking power grids