Powering through: 2024 key trends in the power sector

2024 was a challenging year for deals and hiring in the power sector. Credit: Fit Ztudio via Shutterstock

The power sector has featured in headlines on geopolitical conflicts, elections and natural disasters that have dominated 2024.  

The fallouts from these global events have highlighted the importance of energy security as increasing power consumption continues to strain grids.  

This pressure has been exacerbated by year-on-year dwindling of industry deals and hiring. Power Technology’s parent company GlobalData reveals that 2024 constituted a record low for deals in the power sector since the beginning of the decade.  

However, renewables have provided a light at the end of the tunnel for the industry to channel investments during this formative period in the energy transition. 

Power Technology reviews the key trends that shaped the power sector this year and provides an outlook for 2025. 

According to GlobalData’s industry analytics on mergers and acquisitions (M&A), there were 1,411 acquisitions announced in the power sector in 2024, totalling $244.60bn. There were also 801 asset transactions worth $103.33bn and 56 mergers announced at $26.99bn.  

This year’s total M&A value of $374.92bn marked a 19% decline from 2023’s $456.98bn, as power businesses navigated highly uncertain market conditions. 

Across all deal types, including partnerships and capital raising, solar retained its position as the leading sector with a total of 1,418, reflecting escalating demand for the low-cost and rapidly deployable technology.  

Solar was followed closely by transmission and distribution at 1,295 and wind with 1,076.  

Fossil fuels deals held steady in 2024 with 819 deals, a slight drop from 851 in the previous year. Factors such as familiarity and the prospect of high short-term returns for investors mean hydrocarbons still pose stiff competition for cleaner sources.

Driven by India, Asia-Pacific (APAC) saw the most power deals internationally, reaching 1,900 at a value of $276.86bn. This reflects the region’s domination in renewables, with its capacity on track to triple by 2030 in line with 1.5ºC. 

Although North America trailed behind APAC with 1,817 deals, its overall value was higher at $581.09bn, due in part to the US’ favourable policy incentives for energy technologies.  

Meanwhile, the power industry underwent a 12% decline in hiring from 2023 to 2024, bearing out macroeconomic and trading pressures. Along with leading in deal value, the US also had the largest jobs growth of any country, followed by France and Germany.  

Globally, the top recruiters in power were Engie, RWE and Electricite de France.

As in the previous year, the occupations with the most active roles were engineering technologies, software and web developers, programmers and testers.  

Environmental and digital progress were a major driver for hiring practices in the power sector this year, reflected in AI’s key role in expediting renewables.

GlobalData analyst Pavan Vyakaranam tells Power Technology: “AI is increasingly being used in renewable energy generation, electricity demand forecasting and grid optimisation, while predictive maintenance algorithms and software can identify potential faults and initiate repairs before an asset experiences failure.”  

EIT Innoenergy thematic leader of renewable energies Javier Sanz confirms that “the growing renewables industry faces a pressing skills gap, necessitating targeted workforce development to sustain and operate these advanced systems effectively.” 

Despite the decline in power deals and hiring, global power players expanded investments across renewable energy sources in 2024, diversifying their portfolios and bringing life to the otherwise strained sector.

SK Innovation and SK E&S, two holding companies owned by Korean conglomerate SK Group, merged to form APAC’s largest private energy company, covering renewables and liquified natural gas.  

In one of the biggest deals in the year, Contact Energy entered a $1.14bn (NZ$1.94bn) agreement to acquire 100% of Manawa Energy, one of New Zealand’s largest renewable energy generators. The deal is set to consolidate New Zealand’s hydropower, wind and solar capacity.  

This was followed by Spanish renewable energy leader Iberdrola closing on an 88% stake in UK-based Electricity North West for $5.4bn (€5.1bn), bringing the value of Iberdrola’s portfolio in the country to $15.09bn and positioning it as the UK’s second-largest electricity network operator. 

In November, ACCIONA Energía agreed to sell its $1.08bn hydroelectric portfolio to Endesa in Spain, unifying the European country’s hydropower capacity.  

According to the International Energy Agency, if the “impressive” spending trend of the renewables sector in 2024 continues, “it would cover approximately two-thirds of the total investment needed to triple renewable capacity by 2030”.

Sanz confirms that this year’s progress has brought “critical questions to the fore”, adding that “the integration of variable renewable energy sources has strained existing grid infrastructures, highlighting the urgent need for advanced energy storage solutions and more agile grid management systems”.

Attracting further investment in innovative energy solutions hinges on consistent regulatory support, which was upset this year by a packed electoral calendar.  

More than half of the world’s population went to the polls in 2024 for national elections, voting for political parties with diverse approaches to energy.

In the first major election of the year in early June, the European Parliament saw a significant shift to the right and smaller majorities for centrist, liberal and environmentalist parties, in a result that was dubbed ‘Green Deal Fatigue’. 

By the end of the decade, the EU’s swing to the right is expected to weaken progress towards its net-zero 2050 target, with a heightened emphasis on protectionism. In the near-term, however, the EU’s position as a clean energy leader is holding strong, leaving the future of the region’s power sector uncertain.  

Hot on the trail of the EU was the UK election in July that saw the Labour Party end the Conservative’s 14-year reign and assert its focus on reforming national power generation.  

Out of the gate, the new government launched the state-run Great British Energy, partnering with the Crown Estate for a £16bn ($20.45bn) investment in renewables.  

In the party’s first Budget Statement, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced increased headline tax rates for oil and gas operators alongside £2bn for green hydrogen projects. 

Moving forward, the Labour Government is tasked with ensuring that the UK doesn’t continue to fall behind its peers in decarbonisation and developing industrial power, while delivering on its promise to scale back North Sea oil and gas production. 

Across the pond, the pendulum took another major swing as Republican candidate Donald Trump secured a landslide victory over Democrat Kamala Harris to retake his seat in the White House.  

With Trump’s outspoken opposition against renewables and a Republican majority secured in Congress, initial reactions signalled that clean energy in the US faced existential threat as solar and wind stocks plummeted.  

However, technologies that are adjacent to oil and gas production, such as carbon capture storage or hydrogen, are expected to pull through a Trump administration, alongside the wealth of Joe Biden’s clean energy subsidies, providing hope for the energy transition. 

While 2024’s election results brought attention to the diverging energy priorities of global superpowers, industry experts remain optimistic about the upward trajectory of the global clean energy transition.

“Focus must shift towards creating interconnected energy ecosystems,” says Sanz. “Collaborative efforts across sectors and borders will be essential to ensure that systems are resilient, reliable and capable of meeting our future energy demands.” 

Vyakaranam forecasts steady growth in 2025 despite potentially conflicting politics, thanks to the international competition to meet long-term decarbonisation goals. 

On the regulatory side, Joanne Elson from the natural resources and infrastructure team at law firm Simmons & Simmons expects “increased support worldwide, including mandates for renewable energy use and financial incentives for such projects”.

Fossil fuels have made gains on renewables in 2024 and now have increased backing from right-wing leaders. However, the market volatility of oil and gas could allow the comparative affordability of renewables to continue to lead industry investment in 2025 and beyond.