Energy resilience trumps fossil phase-out as government priority finds Siemens study

Energy resilience and energy independence have overtaken the phase out of fossil fuels as a governmental and industry priority, according to results from a Siemens survey, released ahead of COP30 taking place in Brazil in November.

Less than a month before the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference, Germany-based tech major Siemens has released a report stating that ensuring a resilient energy supply should be the top governmental priority among infrastructure transition goals – up from third place in 2023.

The Infrastructure Transition Monitor 2025, based on a global survey of 1,400 senior executives and government representatives in 19 countries, highlights a shift in priorities, says Siemens: from a multilateral vision of clean energy to one increasingly centred on sovereign resilience and regional production. 

According to Siemens, over three in five (62%) respondents believe future energy systems will rely more on local or regional production than global trade, with key enablers including renewable integration, storage readiness, and advanced grid systems. Already, over half say resilience (53%) and energy independence (52%) are reaching maturity or are advanced within their countries – signalling a shift in infrastructure priorities is already underway.

Additionally, with resilience and energy security now taking precedence, confidence in achieving global climate goals is starting to fall, says the survey. 

More than half (57%) of global executives expect increased investment in fossil fuels over the next two years, and just 37% of businesses believe they will meet their 2030 decarbonisation targets – down from 44% in 2023. 

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Commenting in a release was Matthias Rebellius, Managing Board Member of Siemens AG and CEO of Smart Infrastructure: 

“The infrastructure transition is entering a new phase whereby national goals of energy security are overtaking global collaboration on decarbonisation.” 

According to the survey, strong progress has been made on key infrastructure transition goals since 2023. 

The biggest gains have been in energy independence (52% in 2025 up from 27% in 2023), expansion of large-scale renewable energy (54% up from 31%), and expansion of large-scale energy storage (54% up from 28%). In terms of phasing out fossil fuel energy, 49% reported being mature or advanced, up from 26%. 

Additionally, when it comes to proactive management of climate risks, 57% reported being mature or advanced, up from 41% in 2023.

Use of AI

Said Rebellius: “As systems face mounting climate and energy disruptions, resilience is no longer optional - AI, technology, and digitalisation are now critical to this shift.”

According to Siemens, once a grid is sufficiently digitalised and integrated, operators can harness more advanced technologies to improve resilience. 

Chief among these is AI, which can be used to predict and respond to demand fluctuations, equipment failures, and extreme weather events in real time, effectively enabling faster and smarter decisions. 

According to the survey, 72% of energy-sector respondents say AI will transform how their organisation operates within three years. Autonomous grids in particular – capable of self-healing, load balancing, and real-time optimisation – are emerging, with most respondents saying they are ready to adopt. 

However, fragmented systems and a lack of data standards remain key barriers, although investment is growing, and digitalisation, AI, and data integration are widely seen as critical enablers for building resilient, efficient, and intelligent power infrastructure.

Specifically, 76% of respondents say their organisation plans to increase investments in data integration, 73% said their organisations are using AI to help decarbonise operations, and 68% said autonomous systems in the power grid will play a crucial role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 

Said Thomas Kiessling, CTO, Siemens Smart Infrastructure: “With AI and digitalisation, we can create self-healing autonomous grids that reconfigure in real time, manage storage, and optimise the value of behind-the-meter resources.” 

Buildings as assets and electrification of everything

According to the survey, progress on buildings-related infrastructure transition goals remains mixed. Onsite renewables and electrified heating have advanced, but energy efficiency and material reuse have stalled. 

Energy-efficient design and retrofitting face cost and policy barriers, with real estate respondents citing high expense and limited access to finance. On the other hand, adds Siemens, energy efficiency is now the top priority, and investment is rising. The company cites such models as energy-as-a-service (EaaS), which offers a way to decarbonise without tying up capital.

Additionally, most respondents, according to the survey, say digitalisation has strong or transformational potential to reduce costs and improve energy efficiency.

However, only 50% say their organisation has the data they need to make decarbonisation decisions. 

59% of respondents agree that the benefits of autonomous systems in buildings outweigh the costs, 54% are ready to adopt autonomous systems in buildings, and 51% will make significant investments in autonomous systems in the coming year.

Call for predictable policy

According to Siemens, the report highlights that failure to embed resilience into energy planning risks both economic and environmental fallout.

More than half of industrial sector respondents report that uncertainty about the future energy system is delaying investment in clean energy technologies. 

Siemens, through their survey, thus call for stable, predictable policy, which would enable long-term planning and capital investment, such as replacing fossil-fuel systems with low-carbon alternatives or investing in on-site energy storage. 

Said Jan Fassbender, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Head of Global Facilities and Engineering: “For long-term investment decisions, we need stability to act decisively. The clearer the energy roadmap from governments and utilities, the faster we can decarbonise.”