Global Energy Investments - $1.5 Trillion

The explosion of artificial intelligence (AI) is fueling the growth in electricity demand, as data centers consume massive amounts of energy to train and run large language models.

Big Tech is a major driver of energy investment, estimated at $1.5 trillion by 2025, as companies in the field enter into billion-dollar partnerships for greener sources such as nuclear and solar power, according to visualcapitalist.com. Similarly, China generated nearly two-thirds of the world's new renewable capacity in 2024 alone.

The cited source presents global electricity investment by sector over the past decade, based on data from the International Energy Agency (IEA). Thus, with investments increasing by 211% between 2015 and 2025, solar energy has become the fastest-growing energy source in the world, estimated to reach $441 billion in global investments this year. Moreover, 75% of new renewable capacity added globally was driven by solar PV in 2024. In particular, solar PV additions grew by 55% annually in the Americas, 30% in China and 153% in India.

In second place is grid investment, estimated to reach $413 billion in 2025, up 25% from 2015. However, the sector faces numerous bottlenecks, including delays in granting permits and rising equipment costs, given the high demand for generation.

Meanwhile, wind power investment is expected to reach $242 billion this year - a 69% increase from 2015. While wind capacity additions slowed in 2024 in key markets such as Brazil, Europe and Brazil, both India and China saw moderate growth during the year. Coal is next, with investment estimated at $82 billion in 2025, down 10% from 2015; nuclear power is expected to reach $74 billion, up 64%. Natural gas is expected to attract $70 billion in investments in 2025, similar to 2015. Hydro is expected to attract $70 billion, up 19% from 2015, and battery storage is expected to attract $66 billion, with the change in this area not yet known. Other energy sources will attract a total of $36 billion this year, down 35% from 2015, according to the source cited.