By Andrew L. Urban
Publication Date: 2025-12-01 09:17:00
Australia’s stubbornly zealous Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen, is racing along Transition Highway 1 (also known as Route 666) at full speed, ignoring the warning signs on the side of the road.
The devil of detail awaits you…
Bowen’s political electric vehicle will need plenty of airbags as it hits the hurdle of AI’s insatiable power needs. And pretty soon.
There is no sign that he is preparing for this crucial detail of his plans. The explosive growth of artificial intelligence (AI) and data centers brings with it a new variable: increasing electricity demand, which could strain the power grid and jeopardize this development. Data centers worldwide consumed 415 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2024 (1.5 percent of global electricity), and this figure is expected to double by 2030 thanks to AI.
In Australia, data centers already account for around 6 percent of electricity consumption, which will also double by 2030, equating to demand of 4.9 gigawatts (GW) – that’s 2-3 times the official…
