In this March edition of Electricity + Control we feature Industry 4.0 + IIoT, Renewable energy + industrial sustainability, Measurement + instrumentation, and Transformers, substations + the grid.
Here we see the interconnect between the burgeoning use of AI, the accelerating development of data centres, and the growing demand for electricity globally – driven by the demands of data centres as well as rising industrial use, increasing use in other sectors, and the continuing uptake of electric vehicles. In parallel we see the growing need for modern macro and micro grids that enable the transmission and distribution of electricity to meet this demand, and the measurement and instrumentation that support the fine tuning of performance across all sectors.
In Industry 4.0 + IIoT, we see how the explosion of data and the evolution of artificial intelligence is accelerating demand globally for data centres – plus the energy, cooling, and high performance assets they need.
Vertiv shares some of the findings from its Frontiers report, released early this year, which show data centre innovation is continuing to be shaped by macro forces and technology trends related to powering AI, digital twins, and adaptive liquid cooling.
In another article recognising the increasingly widespread use of artificial intelligence in industrial operations and the need for more data centre capacity to power AI processes, Leon Kleyn and Floris van der Walt of WSP in Africa offer an inside view of the cooling demands this presents, the rise of liquid cooling and the technical challenges and opportunities this introduces in Africa’s digital ecosystem.
In Renewable energy +industrial sustainability, the IEA outlines key findings of its Electricity 2026 report, noting that global electricity demand is set to grow strongly through to 2030, by more than 3.5% per year on average, with renewables and nuclear set to meet a greater share of the power mix. This reinforces the need for investments in grids and flexibility.
Beckhoff Automation reports on the use of its open, high-performance control technology by Spanish Group Power Electronics which relies on Beckhoff technology to provide dynamic control of modular industrial solar and energy storage plants around the world.
We also bring you a range of perspectives on South Africa’s changing energy environment and the promise of an open electricity trading market.
David McDonald, CEO of SolarAfrica, a leading IPP, highlights five energy market realities that will shape the way the energy industry operates through 2026.
Wayne Cowie, CEO of energy trader EXSA, sees wheeling as a critical enabler in SA’s electricity supply, introducing new market opportunities for energy users, independent power producers and energy traders.
And Nigel Sun, Head of Sungrow Sub-Saharan Africa, says for mines, manufacturing plants and other industrial sites, several factors are converging to make battery energy storage systems essential for them to remain competitive and profitable.
In Measurement + instrumentation we bring you news from Comtest, ifm, Minebea Intec and other players.
Electricity grids are in focus globally. In our feature on Transformers, substations + the grid, IRENA notes that around the world major investments are needed in grid modernisation and expansion, to accommodate new renewable generation capacity plus battery energy storage and to meet the growing demand for electricity across long established and new application sectors. The agency highlights the financing pledged by utilities globally to build the grids the world needs now, as announced at COP30.
We also bring you news from local manufacturers and suppliers in this space: new digital switchgear from ABB Electrification, reliable medium-voltage switchgear from ACTOM, Legrand’s range of transformers and related electrical equipment, and WEG’s E-houses, custom manufactured off-site for easier installation and commissioning on site when a site is due to go live. In addition, South Africa-based Trafo Power Solutions reports the successful delivery of a mobile substation, locally designed and fully equipped with the transformers and switchgear required, for an Australian mine.
In Engineering the future, Webber Wentzel presents a legal perspective on South Africa’s liberalising electricity market, and Write @ the back, we share with you the view of Dr Rahmat Poudineh of the Oxford Institute of Energy Studies on what he terms Africa’s energy paradox. A speaker at the Africa Energy Indaba, Dr Poudineh highlights costly finance – and the reasons for it – as a major hindrance to the energy transition on the continent, despite the relatively low cost of renewable energy technologies.
Enjoy the read!