The power of renewable energy investment
In the 20th edition of The Wealth Report, we’re revisiting our predictions over the years to see how they’ve fared.
The global economy is electrifying at speed, but infrastructure is struggling to keep up.
For investors, this represents a strategic opportunity.
In 2023’s Wealth Report, we argued that it was time to simplify ESG by focusing on environmental targets. Now, as demand accelerates, should investors be focusing on energy instead? Our review of nearly 50 public real estate sustainability reports from 2025 suggests they should. Energy initiatives are driving intervention and delivering measurable returns.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) projects global energy consumption will rise 15.5% between 2024 and 2035, while supply will increase by 14%. Renewables will cover just 85% of this increase – even less once conversion losses are factored in.
Real estate’s rising power consumption
Buildings account for nearly 30% of global energy use, and the IEA forecasts a 15% rise in consumption by 2035.
Much of the pressure stems from data centre demand. The IEA predicts an increase of 127% in data centre electricity consumption by 2030. This makes efficient buildings and secure power supply increasingly critical.
Access to dependable energy determines whether a hyperscale data centre can open or whether an industrial facility can scale.
For real estate investing, key focus areas are clear:
- Securing supply to reduce operational risk and exposure to volatile prices
- Investing in efficiency and renewable procurement to enhance resilience
- Ensuring assets are energy efficient through retrofit measures
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