Regional Workshop Explores AI Applications in Grid Planning and Operations
EPRI’s new global consortium to drive the development of AI for the power sector formally launched in the Gulf region this week.
At a jointly hosted regional workshop by EPRI Gulf and the GCC Interconnection Authority (GCCIA) in Kuwait City, participants discussed accelerating the use of generative AI across Gulf regional power systems, and explored practical applications of AI in grid planning, operations, and asset management.
The Open Power AI Consortium (OPAI), announced in March, is a cross-sector, global effort to use advanced digital technologies to innovate how electricity is made, moved, and used by customers. Among the consortium’s goals is to create a sandbox environment to develop and validate AI applications, collaborating with utilities, startups, academia, national labs, and technology companies.
OPAI’s 40+ members span utilities in the U.S., Europe, and the Gulf regions, and include France-based RTE, UK-based National Grid, as well as GCCIA, ENOWA (NEOM’s Energy and Water Company), Saudi Electricity Company, and technology companies Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Oracle.
“AI is the key to unlocking a sustainable energy future,” says Eng. Ahmed Al Ebrahim, CEO of GCCIA
“Over the next decade, AI has the great potential to revolutionize the power sector by delivering the capability to enhance grid reliability, optimize asset performance, and enable more efficient energy management,” said EPRI President and CEO Arshad Mansoor. “Through OPAI and regional collaborations like this one with GCCIA and others, we are creating a platform where utilities, researchers, and technology leaders can move from exploration to implementation — together.”
“Collaboration and generative AI are critical to enable a future where technology and energy work hand in hand,” said GCCIA CEO Eng. Ahmed Al-Ebrahim. “By leveraging AI, we can achieve unprecedented levels of efficiency and reliability in our power systems, ensuring a sustainable energy future for the Gulf region.”
At the workshop, sessions led by EPRI, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Oracle highlighted new domain-specific AI models and showcased real-world use cases already being deployed across the energy sector. The group also brainstormed future use cases addressing advanced planning, operations, cybersecurity, supply chain management, and more.
Workshop participants included representatives from GCCIA, Saudi Electricity Company, ENOWA, alongside several other leading utilities from across the GCC, affirming the region’s growing role in shaping the future of AI in energy.
