Green energy costs too much. But does it?

The next time someone tells you that transitioning to green energy is too costly or inefficient, feel free to call them a liar.

As a recent study by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) found, it’s already too costly not to do away with fossil fuels. According to the IMF, in the year 2020 governments subsidised the fossil fuel industry by $5.9 trillion. Yes, you read that correctly. That is $11 million per minute, and a number that equates to 56 years worth of Slovakia’s annual GDP.

The IMF study breaks down subsidies into two categories “explicit” and “implicit”. Explicit subsidies come in the form of tax breaks or manipulating prices on coal, natural gas or petrol. But implicit subsidies are a good deal more interesting, and rarely talked about.