Every Kilowatt Counts: Ensure Reliability with New Innovations
Energy demand continues to accelerate, primarily driven by increased cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), data centers, and the electrification of many things we use daily. The White House administration brought this issue front and center when they declared a national energy emergency.
Across the U.S., electric demand is forecasted to increase by nearly 16% by 2029, and there are no signs of slowing down. Data center power demand alone is expected to grow 160% by 2030.
However, our nation is counting on an already burdened grid to meet this surging demand. More than 70% of the nation’s power grid is over 25 years old, and nearly 80,000 MW of power plants are listed as confirmed retirements over the next decade, with another 115,000 MW retiring in the coming decade. At the same time, the current administration’s implementation of tariffs could increase costs for the U.S. energy sector, making it more expensive to build new power plants.
The energy sector is at a tipping point. Energy producers must simultaneously ensure the seamless reliability of existing aging infrastructure while securing resources and solutions to increase production and fulfill the growing deficit to power our homes, businesses, and the economy successfully. Every kilowatt will count.
Aging Infrastructure and the Aging Workforce
An underlying hurdle compounds these monumental challenges: the talent crisis. The Department of Labor estimates that nearly half of the current workforce in the power industry will retire within the next 5 to 10 years.
The workforce is one of the most essential factors in amping up energy production, and this wave of retirements presents significant risks. The labor gap widens with roles that need to be backfilled, and decades of knowledge and technical expertise can be lost.
The workers approaching retirement have dedicated decades to developing valuable technical knowledge and skills that are hard to replicate. Often, no one understands the processes, challenges, and historical records better than those who have been hands-on in keeping operations running. Without a plan to capture and transfer their critical knowledge, plants face significant threats to reliability, efficiency, and safety.
Unfortunately, the talent pipeline to replace retirements and amp up demand is running dry. Among energy sector employers, 71% said they struggle to find the skilled talent they need.
Transforming the Energy Sector with Innovative Technology
There simply isn’t enough capacity or people to keep the lights on in the coming years if we continue operating at the status quo. Incremental changes to our energy sector won’t be enough to keep up.
The workforce is changing, and our approach to operations must also change to meet this critical moment. It’s time to turn to innovation and technology to transform the American power industry.
Today’s modern workforce is increasingly embracing and expecting innovative technologies. Companies within the tech sector are receiving an abundance of applicants. At the same time, the power industry struggles to attract and retain top talent. By adopting technology-driven solutions, the power industry will become a more attractive destination for workers.
Solutions like Cantilever, Gecko’s operating platform that leverages AI and robotics, capture the knowledge and historical records at facilities to ensure this critical information isn’t lost. The platform then digitizes and integrates the existing data with full-coverage, high-fidelity data layers captured by a suite of robots.
Innovative solutions maximize the workforce by attracting top talent while empowering workers to drive value and focus on value-added work. With the right technologies, workers can make faster, more confident decisions in safer work environments. Successful adoption will translate into improved efficiency, reliability, and workforce capabilities.
Facing the Perfect Storm with AI-Driven Facilities of the Future
Modernizing the grid with AI and robotics enables facilities to find failures before they happen, double asset life spans, and optimize plant performance without guesswork. The energy sector can’t risk unplanned downtime or falling behind at such a crucial time.
Modernizing and optimizing the existing infrastructure is the quickest way to generate additional power for the grid. Deploying AI-powered technologies will drive predictive maintenance for seamless reliability. AI and robotics solutions must be embraced as the new standard to keep up with the growing demand.
The future of America’s energy sector relies on innovation. Modernizing the grid is the only way to face this perfect storm—ultimately protecting our national security, global competitiveness, and the future of our energy system.