Grid infrastructure constraints to become paramount concern in 2026

AI, storage capacity, and grid-forming inverters are top modernisation trends for 2026.

Grid infrastructure is poised to be a paramount concern for nations next year, as its current limitations are emerging as a critical constraint on energy security and the energy transition.

In its “Horizons Top Trends 2026” report, S&P Global said that grid investment has been a problem for decades as it lagged the pace of energy decarbonisation and energy innovation across many markets.

“This underinvestment has now become a critical bottleneck. As the world races to address expanding energy needs — electrification, decarbonisation and digitalisation — the grid must evolve or risk becoming the weakest link in power systems,” the report read.

The company noted that the energy expansion required to satisfy AI-driven demand growth will only move as fast as the grid allows.

Some of the emerging grid modernisation trends next year include grid-forming inverters, AI-driven digitalisation, solid-state transformers, grid-enhancing technologies, storage capacity, and onsite generation.