Once the premise of science fiction novels and movies, artificial intelligence (AI) is now very much a reality, being employed in various disciplines and areas, including energy.
Mr Martin Svensson – from the organisation AI Sweden – was the special guest at Premier Alan Winde’s latest Energy Digicon. Mr Svensson gave the digicon a “glimpse of the future”, where AI is positively harnessed to stabilise, optimise and improve energy generation.
Using the transport sector as an example, Mr Svensson said, “AI is also going to impose greater challenges on the energy system. We are now moving quickly towards an automated transportation system, which will be 100% electrified.”
Put differently, AI will be a positive ‘disruptor’. “We are on the cusp of the fastest, most profound disruption of the energy sector in over a century. It is not only about fixing the current problems, it would rather be a completely new system, especially for a place like the Western Cape. This will be so exciting to see how this will change the current situation into not only a life without loadshedding, but a life with energy abundance,” he added.
A sustainable and resilient power system of the future will include wind, solar and battery storage. In his presentation, Mr Svensson pointed out that solar and wind energy are already among the cheapest new generation options, costing less that coal, gas and nuclear power. He stated that electricity in 2030, generated using this new system, will cost less than 3 cents per kilowatt hour. “This enables a completely new system. Even in a situation like yours (South Africa) that is primarily coal-based, to a new system that is 100% sustainable and generates an excess of energy. This is a great opportunity, both for humanity and a region like the Western Cape to quickly transform its energy situation and generate jobs and economic growth” he continued.
The model Mr Svensson showcased would be fully decentralised. “Organisations, companies and individuals will be the producers of this energy,” he explained.
He put forward the concept of “superpower”, the product of a power system that naturally generates a huge surplus of clean energy at near-zero marginal cost. Using the case study of the state of California in the United States, which AI Sweden believes can be applied to the Western Cape, Mr Svensson explained, “Given solar levels and wind speeds the comparison could be quite straightforward.”
According to him the province would have “superpower” and enough energy to electrify its entire transport system amounting to:
- 14 GW of solar energy;
- 1.7 GW of wind power; and
- 80 GWh of energy storage.
Premier Winde said, “Innovations such as AI are a reality. We should not ignore it. If AI is regulated and used responsibly is can be a powerful tool in addressing imposing challenges like the energy crisis.”
Mr Svensson added, “AI is certainly powerful and powerful things can be used in different ways. The global community must get together to regulate it. Discussions are happening on a collaborative basis across borders.” His advice was, “Do not stay out of AI, learn what it is. This will help you mitigate risks. Not being interested it in poses a bigger risk.”
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