Automation and AI are playing an increasingly prominent role in the energy sector, where the autonomous energy sector rapidly emerges as a defining trend. A new global study from Schneider Electric indicates that half of the industry could be fully autonomous within four years. While Asia and North America are leading this shift—driven largely by the energy demands of AI—Sweden is lagging: a quarter of Swedish respondents report they have not yet begun adopting autonomous solutions.
Figures from Schneider Electric’s new report “Global Autonomous Maturity”, conducted across 12 countries with 400 industry leaders, show several factors driving the energy and chemical sectors’ push toward automation.
Almost a third (31.5 percent) say autonomous solutions are a high priority for the next five years, rising to 44 percent looking ahead ten years. Fewer than five percent globally consider the area low priority.
Industry leaders point to strong commercial incentives and warn that delayed adoption could lead to higher operating costs (59 percent), increased skills shortages (52 percent) and weakened competitiveness (48 percent). Implementation does come with barriers: the top constraints are high upfront investments (34 percent), legacy system environments (30 percent), organizational resistance (27 percent), cybersecurity risks (26 percent) and regulatory uncertainty (25 percent).
The report finds the sector at a pivotal transition where electrification, automation and digitalization converge. The sharply rising demand for AI—driven mainly by hyperscale cloud services and the expansion of data centers—places unprecedented pressure on global energy systems. Electricity demand is expected to nearly double to 1,000 TWh by 2030, reinforcing the need for flexible, efficient and resilient operations.
Within the emerging energy ecosystem shaped by artificial intelligence, half of industry leaders identify AI as the single most important enabler of increased autonomy. Other key enablers include advances in cybersecurity, cloud and edge computing, digital twins, advanced process control, and open, software-defined automation.
“Globally, organizations already report operating at around 70 percent autonomy, with plans to reach 80 percent by 2030. Autonomy is rapidly becoming the industry’s new operating model. As AI matures and energy systems face increasing stress, autonomous operations are proving essential for resilience and competitiveness. This shift is not about replacing people, but about enabling them to focus on higher-value work, improving safety and raising skill levels. Those who scale now will shape the next era of industrial performance,” says Gwenaelle Avice Huet, Executive Vice President at Schneider Electric.
Industry analysts also say deployment has progressed faster than anticipated.
“The report shows autonomy implementation in the sector is more advanced than expected, with open and software-defined automation effectively leading the next phase of energy innovation. In an industry where reliability, safety and reduced carbon emissions are non-negotiable, these technologies are the most efficient way to deliver ‘more with less’ and drive more resilient and competitive operations,” says Gaurav Sharma, independent energy market analyst and contributor to the study.
Sweden falls behind in autonomous development
The report describes Sweden as one of the countries at the forefront of modern technology. Despite that, nearly a quarter of Swedish industry leaders say they have not yet begun using autonomous solutions—yet almost all (96 percent) agree climate goals are impossible to meet without automation. Four in ten are concerned about cybersecurity, and 36 percent view skills shortages within their organizations as a major challenge.
“For Sweden to remain a leader in innovation and technology, we must automate more, more efficiently and at greater scale. To enable that, we need to close skills gaps and make it easier for companies to digitize. That will be crucial to securing Swedish competitiveness going forward,” says Susanne Dahl, Vice President for Industrial Automation in the Nordics and Baltics at Schneider Electric.
The shift is clear but uneven, with regional differences in maturity. While GCC countries and Asia currently lead, North America is expected to deliver the fastest implementation of autonomous solutions over the next five years due to rising energy production and consumption and growing data center capacity. Europe is making steady progress but shows the slowest adoption pace.
Autonomous operations are redefining how energy and chemical companies run their facilities. Schneider Electric and AVEVA are at the forefront of this change, supporting customers such as Shell, European Energy, ADNOC and Baosteel with real implementations. By integrating Schneider Electric’s process control and energy management with AVEVA’s digital technologies and industrial intelligence, they deliver integrated, software-defined architectures that provide real-time visibility and enable AI-driven digital twins capable of predicting, adapting and self-optimizing with minimal intervention, says Devan Pillay, President for Heavy Industry at Schneider Electric.
About the survey
The study was conducted in collaboration with Censuswide and Development Economics and includes insights from independent energy market analyst Gaurav Sharma. It is based on responses from 400 senior energy executives across 12 countries in North America, Europe, Asia and the GCC. The research was supplemented by desk research and conversations with industry participants and commentators in the global energy and chemical sectors.