AI's rise is creating a surge in demand for skilled trades in India, with electricians up 242% and robotics technicians over 500% in four years. This 'labour flip' sees blue-collar salaries narrowing the gap with entry-level white-collar roles, as infrastructure development and AI backbones drive job growth.
Australia's climate change minister, Chris Bowen, declared the country can transition from fossil fuel exports to clean energy products, leveraging its renewable potential to become a "renewable energy superpower." Speaking at climate talks in Bonn, Germany, Bowen acknowledged the shrinking global market for fossil fuels and highlighted Australia's advantages in solar, wind, and battery technology, suggesting exports of green hydrogen, electricity, and even "green AI" could decarbonize other nations. The minister will co-host the upcoming UN climate summit, Cop31, in Turkey.
China is building a new power grid to handle its growing renewable energy capacity, with wind and solar power now exceeding thermal power. The "15th Five-Year Plan" focuses on integrating these green sources, improving transmission from western to eastern regions, and investing over 5 trillion yuan in new grid infrastructure.
Gaon Cable announced on the 4th that it will supply approximately 35 billion won worth of cables for AI data center power grids to a US power infrastructure supplier. This marks Gaon Cable's first entry into the AI data center power grid market, with expectations for related sales to reach 100 billion won this year.
Australia sees a 10% drop in electricity prices due to record renewables and battery use, transforming households into market producers. This shift offers lessons for other nations on energy market reform.
Energy bills in parts of Australia will decrease by up to 10% for households and 20% for small businesses from July, driven by record renewable energy and battery storage. Despite this, investment in new wind and solar projects has declined.
Energy bills in South Australia, New South Wales, and southeast Queensland will decrease by up to 10.7% for households and 20.9% for small businesses from July. This follows a record increase in renewables and battery storage in the national grid.
China plans to invest over 5 trillion yuan in building a new, more secure, green, and intelligent power grid during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030). This initiative aims to support rising energy demand, integrate more renewable energy, and ensure national energy security.
Southeast Asian leaders are revitalizing plans for a unified electricity grid, first conceived in 1997. The initiative aims to enable seamless cross-border energy flow, requiring system redesign to integrate new technologies and manage renewable energy variability, according to a new Ember report.
A transformer blast at a Gurgaon substation plunged large parts of the city into darkness due to extreme heat and record electricity demand. The incident disrupted power to thousands, halted metro services, and highlighted the strain on NCR's power grid.
Cuba's national energy grid failed, causing widespread power outages in eastern provinces and ongoing blackouts in Havana, amid a prolonged economic crisis exacerbated by a U.S. energy blockade and reliance on limited Russian oil supplies.
Massive new data centers are the physical foundation for tech companies’ hopes and dreams for AI. But the rush to expand warehouses full of energy-hungry servers has also kicked up fights across the world over their impact on power grids, utility bills, nearby communities, and the environment.  From audacious plans to launch data centers into […]
PJM Interconnection — which oversees the grid for some of the densest data center developments on Earth — wants to overhaul itself. Not everyone thinks it's up to the task.
PJM Interconnection — which oversees the grid for some of the densest data center developments on Earth — wants to overhaul itself. Not everyone thinks it's up to the task.
A renter-friendly pilot program in New York City is aiming to reduce strain on the power grid while helping customers with power bills
A renter-friendly pilot program in New York City is aiming to reduce strain on the power grid while helping customers with power bills
The data center industry is facing a reckoning as governments around the world consider imposing limits on the growth of the power-hungry facilities.
A 68-year-old ALS patient in Berlin narrowly escaped death when a power grid attack cut electricity to his home in January 2026, leaving him with only six hours of ventilator battery. The incident is part of a series of attacks by a decentralized left-wing extremist network known as the Volcano Group, which has carried out at least 13 attacks on Germany's critical infrastructure since 2011, including the largest Berlin blackout since WWII.
Octopus Energy CEO Greg Jackson has suggested some households would accept occasional electricity blackouts in exchange for 25% lower energy bills, sparking controversy on the anniversary of Europe's largest power outage in Spain and Portugal. The comments come as UK dual fuel bills are expected to rise to almost £2,000 from July, with grid upgrade costs climbing from £254 to £457 annually. Jackson, 54, clarified he was not advocating for blackouts but said Spanish consumers would accept occasional outages for cheaper electricity. At least six people died in last year's Iberian blackout, including two who died after being unable to run breathing equipment.
Octopus Energy CEO Greg Jackson has suggested some households might accept occasional electricity blackouts in exchange for significantly lower energy bills, citing Spain's 25% cheaper electricity as a model. Speaking at an industry conference on the anniversary of Europe's largest power outage that affected tens of millions in Spain and Portugal, Jackson clarified he is not advocating for blackouts but argued consumers would trade reliability for lower costs. The comments come as Octopus Energy campaigns against tens of billions of pounds in UK grid investment that it says drives up household bills.
China's State Grid Corporation plans to invest $1 billion (6.8 billion yuan) to deploy approximately 8,500 robots across the national power grid by 2026. The fleet includes quadruped robot dogs for terrain patrol, wheeled robots with robotic arms for precision maintenance, and experimental humanoid robots. Developed by domestic companies including Unitree Robotics, Deep Robotics and UBTech Robotics, these machines will assist with inspection and fault detection using thermal imaging and sensors in hazardous or remote locations.
