Strategic Roadmap for Digitalisation and AI in Energy Sector

The European Commission has published a Strategic Roadmap for Digitalisation and AI in the Energy Sector (COM(2026)501 final).

• Main announcement: The European Commission sets out a three-pillar Strategic Roadmap to integrate digitalisation and AI into the EU energy system, including tripling EU data center capacity within 5-7 years, a model tripartite agreement to integrate data centers into grids, and an EU rating scheme for data centers (rating adopted in 2026; first labels in 2027; minimum energy performance needs assessment by 2027).
• Background and implementation details: The Roadmap specifies concrete measures, timelines and funding: Horizon Europe funding for AI and digital energy (around EUR 75 million for AI in energy and EUR 190 million for broader digital solutions in 2026–2027; dedicated calls of EUR 30 million in 2026 and EUR 20 million in 2027 for AI models), a LIFE sub-programme action of EUR 10 million on smart grids (2026), and signals grid investment needs including more than EUR 1.2 trillion for 2024–2040 (EUR 730 bn for distribution, EUR 430 bn for transmission).