Renewable energy from wind, solar and hydro is becoming cheaper than fuel-based power. This will accelerate its take-up enabling a faster-than-planned move to carbon-neutral energy, which fossil fuel producers will not be able to slow down
The biggest problem for 100% renewable energy production is how to deal with times of light winds and dark. Gas power will soon follow coal as an undesirable filler.
Nuclear energy is a carbon-free alternative, but until fusion becomes available, there will be problems dealing with nuclear waste.
Efficient long-range power transmission using high-temperature superconductors may alleviate the problem, but at present this is not known to be possible
Therefore, energy storage is crucial for a zero-carbon future. Electric batteries are efficient, but they are expensive and require rare elements. Car batteries will double as storage for home-based energy solutions when the grid refuses to buy-back from consumers.
Compressed air energy storage will become a viable alternative. The process can be inefficient due to losses from heating, but when renewables become cheap enough this will no longer be a significant problem.
Compressed-air storage has the side advantage of separating carbon dioxide from air which can be removed and injected underground making the process carbon-negative
In the long-term we could see long tunnels being bored deep underground in impervious rocks to be used for compressed air energy storage and carbon-dioxide sequestration. Underground heating will cancel the heat-loss inefficiency
The only innovation required to make this solution work is cheaper tunnel boring machines, but this is already being developed to help with futuristic transport options such as hyperloops
This solution for energy storage will become reality over the next thirty years

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