6 The Energy Outlook dealing with uncertainty and price pressures Energy and AI are the twin engines that have the potential to turbo-charge socioeconomic growth, but energy intensive data centers are competing for energy alongside multiple demand drivers in a growing and increasingly complex world. Gathering at the third ENACT Majlis, energy, technology, investment and government leaders met in Abu Dhabi to advance together, the integrated solutions needed to ignite the twin engines of energy and AI to accelerate global growth. This Majlis emphasized a pragmatic, “less rhetoric, more results” approach, an “and-and” energy strategy across molecules and electrons, and urgency on permitting, supply-chain diversification and talent to keep pace with AI demand. Executive Summary Capital Flow Wealth Creation Policy (Governance) People (Talent) Energy For the first time in human history, a kilowatt of electricity can be turned directly into intelligence. But we cannot achieve the dream of AI without more power. Power is knowledge now. Unattributed quote Over the past 12 months the US alone has added 12GW of Data Center capacity which has added to the surge in electrification around the world which today still relies on 57% molecules to produce that power. Participants acknowledged that today, we are less in an energy transition but and energy addition needing more gas, more renewables and more batteries as the only way to provide firm power to data centers. Massive uncertainty in energy demand depends on the pace of AI growth, development of the Global South, and speed of the Energy Transformation with power supplied from molecules expected to fall to 21% by 2050. Building on this, participants stressed that “power is knowledge”: without abundant, affordable electricity, AI’s promise stalls. Policy stability is as critical as geology, and capital will follow low-cost power. In addition, the industry is facing price pressures which could impact capital budgets. Lower oil prices may impact production including in the US where lower associated gas would impact availability and push up the price of gas for Data centers and would decelerate the progress in shifting to alternative energy sources such as EVs and SAF. Lower investment could lead to future price shocks. Participants also warned that public tolerance for higher electricity bills is shrinking, making affordability a political risk for AI build-outs unless new generation and grid upgrades are co-delivered with siting.