Al Gore Sounds the Alarm on Global Power Grid Problems

An investment firm co-founded by former Vice President Al Gore said Wednesday that modernizing the power grid is key to moving the United States and other countries away from fossil fuels.

According to Generation Investment Management’s 2024 Sustainability Report, the world’s transmission grids built around coal- and natural gas-fired power plants are not prepared to integrate large amounts of wind and solar power.

“Red tape” is making it difficult to get more renewable energy into power grids, the report said, while there are also disagreements over who pays for grid upgrades.

“We are therefore seeing growing waiting lists across the developed world as renewable energy developers ask for grid connections—and are asked to move to the back of the line,” the report says. “Waiting times in some locations are now years.”