Artificial intelligence, blockchain and cryptocurrency: today’s hottest emerging technologies have the potential to reinvent the way we live, but also demand unprecedented amounts of energy and computing resources – calling into question their impacts on our environment, climate, and dwindling resources. In fact, research suggests that by 2025 the IT sector could consume 20% of all the world’s electricity generation. So how can the industry balance innovation and sustainability?
On a viewing platform high above the Yangjiang Nuclear Power Station, CLP Chairman Sir Michael Kadoorie looked out on a spectacular panoramic view of the gigantic complex sprawling below him. Armies of construction workers busily installed the last two generating units of the six-unit plant, which will throw out 6,516MW of power when the station goes into full operation next year, providing clean energy across Mainland China’s Guangdong province. The visit was Sir Michael’s first to Yangjiang after CLP completed its investment in the project last year – the company’s second foray into nuclear power after the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station.