Executive introduction
Powering progress: connection, consistency, and capability
Steven Boogert Global Power Leader
The power sector is entering an important decade. Global energy demand is rising, and power generation is diversifying. In a transition towards an energy system less reliant on fossil fuels, renewables continue to grow. In parts of the world, nuclear power is increasingly seen as a reliable, future-proof alternative for fossil energy.
Increasing electrification and diversification in generation are transforming energy systems around the globe.
With the complexities of interconnection queues, variable supply profiles related to renewables production and growing electrical demand, energy systems are reaching a new peak of volatility.
Energy producers and infrastructure companies alike are reshaping and expanding their asset inventories and investing heavily to meet demand.
Across this editorial, we go deeper on the decisions leaders are making right now: using digital insight to prioritize investment with confidence, dealing with brownfield modernization and greenfield development as a lifecycle discipline rather than a one-off event, and reimagining surplus sites as future-ready assets.
Adding value throughout the asset lifecycle
Many factors play a role in realizing new assets, and understanding the main drivers and blockers is crucial to achieving timely realization. Of course, everything starts with a viable business case. In many cases, especially with renewables, certainty on reliable long-term offtake is a driving factor for an investment decision.
Project preparation and planning can be a lengthy process, and permitting and interconnection delays can be a primary bottleneck. Understanding the asset itself, as well as its context, and engaging stakeholders early on is crucial to getting irrevocable consent.
Standardization in design and processes alike can be part of the solution. Standardized designs create clarity for engineers and contractors. Standardized processes, for example, planning, and permitting increase the chance of timely realization. Digitization and data management, for example, in the form of BIM and digital twins, facilitate operability and maintainability throughout the asset lifecycle.
Of course, achieving positive change depends on more than just technical excellence: stakeholder management has become a defining factor, too. Community opposition to wind turbines, (fossil-based) power generation, substations, or transmission lines can delay or derail essential projects.
In an era shaped by misinformation and AI-generated content, clear communication of the “why” behind each development, linking projects to energy security, reliability, local economic resilience and sustainability, is critical. Anticipating future trends and maintaining a clear roadmap for each stage of an asset's life is essential to remaining competitive and relevant in a shifting market.
Accelerating change through an integrated approach
In light of all of this, my message to power leaders is to act early and in a collaborative way. A clear asset planning and lifecycle strategy, early involvement of and collaboration with key stakeholders, from policymakers and competent authorities, to engineering and contracting firms and the supply chain, will help accelerate the realization of a future-proof energy system.
