This week, Wall Street behemoth Goldman Sachs announced it had ruled out direct finance for new or expanding thermal coal mines and coal-fired power plant projects worldwide, as well as direct finance for new Arctic oil exploration and production.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-20/investors-are-looking-to-a-future-without-coal-power/11814436
The most common “death spiral” mentioned regarding energy is solar power. As more people install the panels, those still on the grid have to pay more because the infrastructure is being used by fewer people. Mass production means solar panels get cheaper, and then people start noticing that it is a better option than the being on the increasingly more expensive grid. So more people go solar, solar gets cheaper, grid gets more expensive, repeat…
Grid electricity for consumers could potentially disappear rapidly.
Goldman Sachs won’t give money to coal and oil now, primarily because it sees them as dying industries, and also to be seen as a responsible global citizen. Other finance companies will do the same, and with each, the cost of borrowing for coal and oil will increase. This will make those industries look even less likely to be profitable, so more banks will join in, and finance will cost more and more. Repeat.
One big bank could be the catalyst for achieving something governments and citizens have failed to do