Navigating the new energy landscape
- By Jean Wild
- 16 Oct 2025
- 4 min read
The global energy transition is entering a decisive phase. Following the COP26 milestone in 2021, over 90% of global GDP is now covered by carbon-neutral commitments, and 153 countries have pledged to reduce emissions by 2030.
However, the UN Environment Program (UNEP) still pointed out a gap between rhetoric and reality, calling for countries to align action with ambition, and accelerate mitigation and climate adaptation in this decade.
Recent scenarios from the International Energy Agency (IEA) for achieving net zero by 2050 — including universal access to energy by 2030 — highlight the need for transformative changes to the energy system. This momentum is reshaping the sector, driving the emergence of the new energy landscape (NEL), a paradigm shift defined by electrification, decentralization, digitalization, and decarbonization.
Electricity is becoming the backbone of final energy consumption.
In 2022, electricity accounted for 20% of this consumption, and the IEA projects its share will grow to nearly 30% by 2030, with a threefold increase by 2050. And for the first time in history, renewable energy overtook coal as the world's leading source of electricity in the first half of this year.
This growth is propelled by the deployment of renewable energy technologies, electric vehicles (EVs), heat pumps, battery storage systems, and the electrification of industrial processes and efficiency gains. However, the shift brings complex challenges requiring coordinated technical, regulatory, and societal responses.
From grid to end users — where consumers also become energy producers, a role for which the term prosumers was coined — the NEL is reshaping not only energy flows, but also priorities and solutions.
1. Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency remains fundamental to the NEL. The electrification of end users, improved building insulation, industrial automation, and smart Building Management Systems (BMS) are driving reductions in primary energy demand. These measures also enhance the utilization of renewable electricity, improving sustainability and economic feasibility across the system.
2. Integration of Decentralized Renewable Energy
The development of Distributed Energy Resources (DERs), including rooftop solar and small-scale wind, necessitates a flexible and responsive grid. Managing active and reactive power in real time is critical to maintaining grid stability. Technologies such as Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS) and BMS empower prosumers—consumers who also produce energy—to support grid balancing.
Energy storage solutions provide further flexibility. Electrochemical batteries store electricity for use during periods of lower production or peak demand, while thermal storage, such as hot water tanks or building thermal inertia, stores heat for later use. Together, these technologies improve system reliability in a renewable-based, decarbonized energy landscape.
At the grid level, Advanced Distribution Management Systems (ADMS) and Distributed Energy Resource Management Systems (DERMS) enable the integration of intermittent renewable energy into a dynamic, intelligent infrastructure.
3. Resilience, Interoperability, and Cybersecurity
Climate-induced disruptions and aging infrastructure demand a resilient electrical system. Interoperability ensures that diverse components—from power generation to smart meters—communicate and function cohesively. Cybersecurity is also vital to protect data integrity and operational continuity. Smart grids and microgrids, in both Alternative Current (AC) and Direct Current (DC) formats, enhance resilience and enable localized energy autonomy.
4. Universal Energy Access
Energy poverty remains a global challenge, particularly in developing regions - depending on how it’s measured, between 666 million and 3.3 billion people lack sufficient, reliable, or affordable energy to live, learn, and work with dignity. Microgrids, AC and DC-based systems, can provide reliable and affordable electricity to remote and underserved communities. These solutions support inclusive development and align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Smart grids are integral to the NEL, facilitating bidirectional energy flows, real-time monitoring, and adaptive control to support renewable integration and enhance grid reliability.
Microgrids complement smart grids by offering localized energy solutions that combine power generation, energy storage, and load management. These systems are especially valuable in areas with weak or nonexistent grid connections.
As part of the Shift2DC consortium, we are also pioneering smarter and more sustainable energy systems through DC-based solutions across Europe. This initiative aims at establishing guidelines and roadmaps for DC applications across various energy scenarios, testing technical feasibility, cost-benefit outcomes, life cycle considerations, and environmental impacts in data centers, buildings, industry, and ports.
The NEL manifests differently across regions due to varying legacy systems and energy needs, presenting different opportunities:
- North AmericaFocus on resilience and cost optimization.
- EuropeEmphasis on decarbonation and grid services.
- AsiaIntegration of renewables and grid modernization.
- AfricaPriority on energy access and resilience.
- AustraliaFlexibility and grid services to manage high renewable penetration.
Shaping the future of energy systems requires interconnected safe and efficient solutions on a global scale. Standardization plays a critical role in ensuring interoperability, efficiency, resilience, and security.
In a rapidly evolving energy ecosystem, standards provide the common language and engineering framework necessary for innovation to translate into reliable, secure, and widely adopted solutions.
Safety and protection
Standards safeguard people and equipment. For example, the upcoming International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standard on prosumer electrical installations will define safety requirements for AC and DC systems, ensuring devices can operate together without risk.
Interoperability and compatibility
Standards enable seamless integration of components like HEMS, EV chargers, and DC distribution systems, allowing equipment from various manufacturers to work cohesively. This is essential for system integration and market development.
System design and engineering
Installation standards guide the design and deployment of complex systems. DC distribution in buildings, for instance, requires standardized voltage levels, short-circuit calculations, and protection schemes to ensure reliable engineering practices.
Cybersecurity and data integrity
Standards establish secure protocols for communication and data handling that are vital in digitalized energy systems. Thus, mitigating cyber risks and ensuring trust in automated operations.
Regulatory alignment and market development
Standards translate regulatory goals into technical specifications, enabling certification, procurement, and international trade to accelerate clean energy adoption.
As energy technology partner for our customers and the ecosystem, we actively contribute to standardization efforts at national, regional and international level, especially by participating in IEC workgroups, tackling for instance prosumer installation rules in AC and DC, short circuit calculation in DC, or interlink converter converting AC into DC for a DC microgrid.
We are also collaborating with industry stakeholders to advance energy management solutions for residential and commercial buildings. Through partnerships, such as electrical industrial associations IGNES and GIMELEC in France, and European electrical equipment manufacturers organizations like CECAPI and CAPIEL, we work to promote and harmonize electrical solutions.
The new energy landscape presents unprecedented opportunities and complex challenges. Smart grids and microgrids provide the technological foundation for a sustainable, resilient, and inclusive energy future. Standards play a vital role in ensuring these technologies are safe, interoperable, and scalable. As the energy transition accelerates, aligning innovation with robust standardization will be key to achieving global climate goals and delivering reliable energy access for all.
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