Energy transition
2026-04-26
10 minute read
10 sources
The 2026 Grid Capex Supercycle: Wires, Transformers, and the Cost of Connection
US transmission and distribution capex has tripled in a decade, EU TYNDP commits EUR 600 billion through 2034, and the binding constraint has moved from generation siting to transformers, conductor steel, and an interconnection queue measured in years.
Investor-owned utilities in the United States will spend more than USD 170 billion on transmission and distribution in 2026, up from a roughly USD 50 billion average across the early 2010s, according to the EEI Annual Capex Survey tracker. The drivers are a measurable step change in data center load, slow but real industrial reshoring, we...