Report: AI, Aircon Driving Surge in Global Electricity Demand

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Facts

  • The International Energy Agency (IEA) has reported that global demand for electricity is expected to increase by 4% in 2024, the third-fastest pace since 2007.1
  • The analysis published on Friday highlights that record heat waves in 2024 — the warmest year on record worldwide — have driven up air conditioning demands and that generative artificial intelligence is ramping up data centers' energy needs.2
  • This comes as the latest sustainability reports from Google's parent company, Alphabet, and Microsoft indicate that energy demands for AI are disrupting their ambitious climate goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.3
  • This year, electricity consumption in China and India is expected to increase by 6.5% and 8%, respectively, while demand in the US and Europe is set to rebound and rise up to 3% and 1.7% respectively.4
  • According to the Electricity Mid-Year Update report, worldwide electricity demand grew 2.5% last year and is forecast to increase by another 4% in 2025.5
  • The report claims that wind and solar power generation will be able to make up to nearly three-quarters of the increase to 2025, as well as that total renewable generation will overtake coal electricity output in global supply next year.4

Sources: 1Bloomberg, 2Axios, 3Newsweek, 4IEA and 5Forbes.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Wall Street Journal. The push for renewables has lagged in the developing world, as the emerging markets want the same opportunity to develop as the West had. As climate change accelerates, the West needs to get real about the pros and cons of renewables and make it worthwhile for countries to switch. Anything other than massive grants shows how vacuous renewable proposals are.
  • Narrative B, as provided by New York Times. Energy consumption and climate change are locked in a brutally vicious cycle: Emissions drive climate change, which leads to increasing demand for electricity from emission-spewing sources. Renewables offer us the chance to break that cycle. There won't be any need for power on a dead planet, so industries have voted with their wallets and dumped billions into renewable projects, showing how bright the future can be.

Predictions