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In recent years climate change has emerged as a global issue directly related to quality of life. In this context, one of the key goals in the next few decades will be to transition the global economy to a sustainable system. The nature of the energy planning process dictates the application of complex models. There is no universal solution to the energy planning problem. Each territory requires a bespoke strategy aimed at utilising its specific potential. The research presented in this paper explores reaching a zero-carbon energy system at the city level. It establishes a step-by-step decarbonisation method and proposes an energy transition index (ETI). The index presented is used to evaluate different renewable energy sources (RES) deployment scenarios in the context of affordability, self-reliance, and sustainability. The main aspects and barriers of deploying sustainable energy solutions are also explored. Some of the key challenges of RES deployment are identified as capital intensity, output variability, and the regulatory framework. The approach applied in the paper focuses on a city-level strategy in line with the goal of satisfying demand through local energy sources. The presented analysis offers two basic conclusions: (1) each territory requires a bespoke strategy that can optimally utilise its energy potential and (2) building a local zero-carbon system can be feasible only by implementing energy storage technologies.

There is an ongoing, revolutionary transformation occurring across the globe. This transformation is altering established processes, disrupting traditional business models and changing how people live their lives. The power sector is no exception and is going through a radical transformation of its own. Renewable energy, distributed energy sources, electric vehicles, advanced metering and communication infrastructure, management algorithms, energy efficiency programs and new digital solutions drive change in the power sector. These changes are fundamentally altering energy supply chains, shifting geopolitical powers and revising energy landscapes. Underlying infrastructural components are expected to generate enormous amounts of data to support these applications. Facilitating a flow of information coming from the system's components is a prerequisite for applying Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions in the power sector. New components, data flows and AI techniques will play a key role in demand forecasting, system optimisation, fault detection, predictive maintenance and a whole string of other areas. In this context, digitalisation is becoming one of the most important factors in the power sector's transformation process. Digital solutions possess significant potential in resolving multiple issues across the power supply chain. Considering the growing importance of AI, this paper explores the current status of the technology’s adoption rate in the power sector. The review is conducted by analysing academic literature but also by analysing several hundred companies around the world that are developing and implementing AI solutions on the grid’s edge.