Microsoft chairman warns US has “no option” but to boost investment in clean energy.

Bill Gates has urged the US government to triple its investment in green technologies to $16bn annually, warning the country is lagging behind China, France and Canada in its efforts to develop a low-carbon economy.

Writing for the journal Science on Friday, the Microsoft chairman said the US government should restore investment in energy research and development, which has fallen to $5bn a year during the past three decades.

Citing a recent report by the American Energy Innovation Council, Gates said the government could pay for the increased investment by reducing or eliminating current subsidies to well-established energy industries, diverting a portion of royalties from domestic energy production, collecting a small fee on electricity sales, or imposing a price on carbon.

“Any combination of these could provide the funds needed to increase energy innovation,” he said.

Gates argued that the US government had “no option” but to increase its investment in clean energy technology because fossil fuels are prone to extreme price fluctuations and are a cause of global warming.

He warned that the US is losing out in the race to develop a low carbon economy, as it spends around $1bn per day importing oil, while countries such as China, Germany, Japan and Korea are making large investments in clean energy technologies.

“The creation of new energy products, services and jobs is a good thing wherever it occurs, but it would be a serious miscalculation if America missed out on this singular opportunity,” he said.