South Australia’s energy warning for the nation

I noted on Wednesday that Australia is facing surging energy demand driven by a combination of extreme population growth and the build-out of data centres driven by AI, cloud, and hyperscale investment.

First, Australia’s population is officially projected by the Centre for Population to balloon by 13.4 million people (nearly 50%) by 2065–66, adding roughly 50% to household electricity demand over the same timeframe.

Second, Australia ranks among the world’s top data centre hubs, with over 250 facilities. A recent report by Knight Frank indicates in 2024, total data centre investment equated to around $US6.7 billion, the second highest level of any nation, behind the U.S.