Energy transformation and its main trends
17. 4. 2025
More and more individuals and companies are focusing on the transition to renewable energy and looking for ways to optimise its production, storage and distribution. At the same time, they are looking for ways to reduce their energy costs.
According to the international company Eaton, the trend is towards the democratisation of energy, i.e. greater involvement of households and businesses, which can benefit all stakeholders.
Trends in energy transformation
Energy transformation encompasses three main macro trends:
- First and foremost is the increase in electrification of buildings and transport. The development of electrification, whether due to the rise of electric mobility or data centres, is estimated to lead to an increase in electricity consumption of more than 50% by 2050.
- The second major trend is a fundamental change in the sources from which electricity is generated. There is a shift away from fossil fuels such as coal towards low-carbon and renewable sources of electricity. Experts predict that by 2035, half of all electricity worldwide will be generated from renewable sources.
- The third trend is a change in the structure of electricity generation, with the expansion of distributed sources of electricity rather than large-scale generation.
All are part of the grid
Global energy management company Eaton describes its approach to energy transformation with the slogan everything is part of the grid.
This innovative approach involves the involvement of many different parties in the generation, balancing, storage and distribution of electricity - activities that were previously only carried out by distribution companies.
The new approach will see a two-way flow of energy, which can help utilities avoid costly investments due to increases in electricity consumption. Instead, they can take advantage of the capacity and opportunities for distributed generation or energy storage owned by customers.
Ideally, these savings can be passed on to the commercial, residential or industrial owners of these facilities, who can then offset their own investments in these facilities. Distributed renewables and energy storage are the future in a context of increasing energy intensity.
Democratisation of energy
The concept of democratisation of energy means that individuals and companies will not only be able to generate and store their own energy, but also feed it back into the grid. This will allow them to increase operational resilience through self-generation and reduce their dependence on grid energy supplies. In addition, by selling surplus energy back to the grid, they can offset the costs of acquiring and operating generation technologies.
The deployment of distributed energy resources can help generating companies reduce costs associated with peak power charges and eliminate the costs associated with production outages in the event of power failures.
Energy storage
Energy storage systems allow households, businesses and industrial enterprises to store energy when it is available - whether due to surplus generation or low purchase prices - and use it as needed.
Combined with photovoltaic panels, energy storage allows to increase the share of locally produced renewable energy. Last but not least, the energy storage system will allow for a back-up source during power outages or blackouts.
As the number of electric vehicles increases, so does the need to install charging stations. When multiple charging stations are installed in one place, for example at shopping centres or company car parks, problems with insufficient grid capacity can arise.
This can be addressed either by reinforcing the distribution system, which is often lengthy and expensive, or by using energy storage. Energy storage facilities can store energy at times of low charging demand and release it at times of high demand to avoid exceeding the maximum allowable consumption.