• Commentary

        • 03 Jun 2026

        India’s electricity demand grows at night: Managing rising cooling demand

        …s cooling demand surges alongside solar power capacity, ensuring sufficient nighttime power capacity is key Power consumption in India is on the rise amid economic and population growth, as well as the growing use of air conditioning as more households purchase units and temperatures increase. Since 2019, the country’s electricity demand has increased by 5% per year. While electricity supply has kept pace, solar PV has accounted for two-thirds of power capacity additions in India since 2019. Against this backdrop, ensuring adequate power generation capacity during periods of peak demand is emerging as a key electricity security issue…

        • Commentary

        • 19 Jan 2026

        7 certainties about energy for this age of uncertainty

        …nuclear is on the rise again, generating more electricity than ever before last year. Today, more than 70 gigawatts of new nuclear capacity is under construction, one of the highest levels in the past 30 years. Soaring electricity demand from data centres means tech companies are also turning to nuclear, attracted by its promise of low-emissions, round-the-clock power supply. Energy security risks are multiplying, especially for critical minerals Traditional hazards affecting the security of oil and gas supplies are now accompanied by vulnerabilities in other areas, including electricity security, as highlighted by the recent major blackouts in…

        • Commentary

        • 29 May 2026

        Battery storage is scaling up and taking on a larger system role

        …latest data, the deployment of batteries expanded strongly in 2025 and broadened across markets – with rapid growth in countries such as Australia and Saudi Arabia, where storage is increasingly being used to support the integration of rising shares of variable renewables.In regions that have been at the forefront of renewable integration and battery deployment, batteries now play an essential role in continuously balancing electricity demand and supply. Comparatively short construction and development timelines are further supporting the rapid deployment of utility-scale batteries in particular: in many markets, projects typically take around two years to develop and commission, giving…

        • Commentary

        • 19 Jun 2026

        Delivering on the EU’s electrification ambitions

        …an Industrial Development Bank to mobilise EUR 100 billion, of which a first EUR 1 billion auction has started. As low- and medium-temperature heat accounts for only around one-third of the EU’s total industrial energy demand, policy support is also emerging for the electrification of higher-temperature processes: 9 of the 15 projects which won funding in the first round of Germany’s Carbon Contracts for Difference Auction aim to use electricity to supply heat at temperatures above 150⁰C.In buildings, reaching the economy-wide target would see the electrification rate increase to 43%, up from 37...

        • Commentary

        • 23 Jun 2026

        How accelerating electrification could strengthen energy security in Southeast Asia

        …Since 2015, energy demand has risen by around 40%, while electricity demand has grown even faster – twice as fast as overall energy use. Although renewables have increased significantly over the past decade, fossil fuels have continued to dominate, meeting over 70% of energy demand growth across this period, with oil accounting for nearly half of total energy consumption.Rapid energy demand growth and continued dependence on fossil fuels brings greater exposure to energy security risks. The region is increasingly reliant on imported fuels, deepening its exposure to price volatility and supply disruptions. The current energy crisis linked to the Middle…

        • Commentary

        • 13 Mar 2026

        Why the growth of energy service companies is uneven globally

        …by progressively tighter energy efficiency and emissions reduction requirements, alongside formal support for energy performance contracting.In the United States, which already had one of the most well-established ESCO markets, the Energy Act of 2020 accelerated market growth by requiring federal agencies to implement at least half of identified efficiency measures through performance contracting. This created stable public sector demand for ESCO services and nearly doubled the market compared with pre-2020 levels.Investment levels in Europe meanwhile experienced a modest contraction in 2024, remaining close to pre-2020 levels. However, some countries are showing renewed dynamism. In Poland…

        • Commentary

        • 09 Jun 2026

        The energy crisis creates even stronger impetus for EU electrification

        …can be cheaper to operate than conventional fuel-based technologies even when electricity costs more per unit of energy than the fuel they replace – i.e. a ratio greater than one. EU countries today face very different price ratios. These differences are driven by historical choices in energy system design, energy taxation, and natural resources. They differ not only between countries, but also within them, as subsidies, taxes, and grid connection fees can vary substantially between industrial and household consumers. Averaging across these users, countries with lower price ratios typically see higher rates of electrification and per capita electricity demand…

        • Commentary

        • 21 Apr 2026

        How governments can best support consumers during this energy crisis

        …capping fuel prices or reducing energy taxes.However, while untargeted support measures can be implemented relatively quickly, they present two major challenges. First, universally lowering the price of fuel when supply is tight sends the wrong market signal, weakening incentives to reduce energy use and improve efficiency in the context of the current supply-demand gap. Second, much of the financial support does not reach those who need it most: low-income households struggling to pay their energy bills. Because higher-income households tend to spend more on energy in absolute terms, broad-based price reductions often deliver greater financial…

        • Commentary

        • 25 Mar 2026

        Businesses see competitive value of energy efficiency, but smaller firms struggle to access solutions

        …for 20% to 40% of operating expenditures, mining companies reported the highest perceived impact of energy efficiency efforts on enhanced competitiveness. This was particularly evident in responses from mining companies in India and Indonesia, where reliance on relatively expensive off-grid diesel electricity generation makes reducing energy intensity especially valuable.When businesses were asked how they would respond to higher energy costs, energy efficiency also emerged as the leading strategic response. Almost 40% of industry leaders ranked energy efficiency as the single most important measure they pursued to offset energy price increases, followed closely by investment in on-site renewables…

        • Commentary

        • 22 Mar 2026

        Wired for water: How electrification is transforming desalination

        …can be very acute at the local level. Rising consumption across sectors combined with population growth in already water-stressed regions is intensifying water scarcity. Desalination has long been developed to supply fresh water in the most affected areas, with significant implications for the energy system: energy use ranges from under 0.1% to as much as 15% of total final consumption, depending on national reliance. However, a shift is underway from thermal desalination technologies to electricity-driven systems as the Age of Electricity reshapes the water-energy nexus. Rising water stress Today, over 4 000 billion cubic metres (bcm…

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