The energy industry is struggling to meet rapidly growing demand as the global economy continues to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. Companies, investors, and policy makers are increasingly focused on decarbonization but in the near term increased production of both conventional and renewable energy will be required.
Renewable energy costs are declining as technology rapidly advances. At the same time, the future of the energy mix is uncertain. While wind and solar account for an increasing share of generation, concerns around energy storage and transmission lead to questions around the overall scale of electrification. Hydrogen and renewable fuels seem increasingly likely to play an important role in the energy transition.
Conventional energy sources including oil and natural gas will remain a large part of the world’s energy mix, supplemented by renewable fuels such as RNG which can utilize existing energy infrastructure. However, the conventional energy industry faces a dearth of investment as investors increase their focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.
Across the energy sector we are in the early stages of a digital transformation which promises to enable companies to make smarter decisions and enable greater profits. However, for the most part, it is still difficult to identify which technologies will be deployed successfully and which companies will emerge as the leaders in this space.
