At the Edge of Power

We are living at the edge of power, both figuratively, because the global energy system is approaching its limits, and literally, because the places in need of reliable electricity, the physical edges of human presence, are where our existing energy technologies fall short.

Providing power to a data center, a port terminal, or an industrial plant is often a matter of connecting infrastructure, still challenging but relatively easier to solve once the grid is updated and connected to more energy sources. But what about the rising demand for energy in hard-to-reach places? From military outposts, polar research stations, to remote mining operations, from isolated island nations to refugee camps and edge data centers located far from urban grids, the energy solutions we rely on today — primarily diesel generators and partial renewable setups — are no longer sufficient, sustainable, safe, or scalable.

Take mining. Many operations are located far beyond the reach of any grid, consuming massive amounts of energy to power heavy machinery, ventilation systems, communications, and water treatment. Most still rely on diesel brought in at great cost, according to the International Council on Mining and Metals. The same holds true for oil and gas sites, where reliable energy is essential to safety and productivity.

Now consider Antarctica or some desert research center. Scientific research stations operate year-round in some of the harshest conditions on Earth. According to the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research, these facilities depend on uninterrupted power for everything from heating (or cooling) and life support to laboratory experiments and satellite communications. While some have adopted wind or solar power, these are often backed up by fossil fuels due to storage limitations and extreme weather, as documented by the National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs.

In Alaska, over 200 villages are entirely off-grid, as reported by the Alaska Energy Authority. They rely on diesel shipments by air or sea to power basic utilities — an expensive, logistically complex, and environmentally damaging setup. Island nations across the Pacific and Caribbean face similar challenges. Even with abundant sunlight, limited land, storm exposure, and battery costs make renewables difficult to deploy at scale, as studies from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) have shown.

At the same time, digital demand at the edge is growing. Edge computing facilities — often placed in rural or mobile locations to enable real-time data processing for defense, telecom, and industrial applications — require highly reliable, consistent power. A short outage can shut down automated systems or interrupt critical services, according to the Uptime Institute's 2023 Global Data Center Survey.

Meanwhile, water desalination and purification systems are being deployed in increasingly remote and arid regions. These installations are electricity-intensive, with the International Desalination Association reporting that energy can represent up to 60% of operational costs. Without stable power, there is no clean water.

The military has long understood the price of inadequate energy systems. During peak operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, U.S. forces consumed around 1.8 million gallons of fuel per day, according to Department of Defense reports. One in every 24 fuel convoys resulted in a casualty, as documented by the Army Environmental Policy Institute. Once transportation, protection, and infrastructure were factored in, the true cost of each gallon would rise to 400 dollars. In many cases, energy became a liability.

So what if there were a kind of power that could reach the edge without bringing its problems with it?

Small modular power systems, nuclear fission reactors (SMRs), and compact fusion systems are being developed for this purpose as well as others. They are not designed to be a central power plant powering a metropolis, but a solution for the distributed, disconnected, and demanding environments where traditional infrastructure cannot reach.

Small modular reactors (SMRs), offer scalability and reliability, but also come with significant challenges. Despite fission being the more mature nuclear technology, SMRs are still in R&D phase, as noted by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Just like the standard nuclear fission power plant, SMRs share the same concerns around long-term radioactive waste management, security vulnerabilities, regulatory hurdles, and public perception, especially in politically or ecologically sensitive regions. The World Nuclear Association acknowledges that while SMRs have made progress, widespread deployment faces both technical and social barriers.

Fusion power, on the other hand, fuses atoms rather than splitting them. It generates four times as much energy per unit of fuel compared to fission, and without the same risks: no long-term waste, no meltdown potential, no proliferation risk. However, commercial fusion power is also in its R&D phase, and before a fusion product can be deployed, the commercialized "fusion energy" part must be reached, despite recent breakthroughs at facilities like the National Ignition Facility. The race to develop fusion systems is accelerating, and in that race, both startups and governments invest in grid-connected solutions and also in small reactors that could operate in precisely the locations where traditional power fails.

Both technologies, when fully developed, could potentially offer solutions that are autonomous, modular, and resilient. They would require minimal maintenance, could be remotely operated, and need only occasional inspection. They would be weather-independent, carbon-free, and logistically simpler than current alternatives. Their upfront cost would be offset by long-term savings in fuel, maintenance, and infrastructure. Over time, they could be not only cleaner and safer, but also more affordable — though this remains to be proven at scale.

This is power that would not rely on the grid, the weather, or a supply convoy. And that makes it the kind of power our future may depend on.

But future readiness requires action now.

Governments must move faster. More investment is needed in demonstration projects and regulatory pathways. Public funding must catch up to private sector momentum. As of early 2025, over 8 billion U.S. dollars have been invested in private fusion ventures, according to the Fusion Industry Association, while government funding for the entire field of fusion and advanced fission has been significantly less. Growing, but less. That gap must close.

Research and development incentives, education pipelines, and streamlined regulatory frameworks must be accelerated. International financial institutions need to create funding tracks that move beyond academic research and focus on deployment. And national energy strategies must address not only where we live, but where we are going.

Because the edge is expanding, and power is not reaching it.

By the end of 2023, nearly 76 million people were internally displaced by conflict or climate disasters — a 51 percent increase in just five years, according to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre. In 2022 alone, storms, floods, and droughts displaced 32.6 million people within their own countries. These communities often relocate to areas with no grid access, where energy becomes a matter of survival.

At the same time, the global edge data center market was valued at 10.4 billion dollars in 2023 and is projected to grow to 29.6 billion by 2028, according to market research firm Mordor Intelligence. These centers, built for low-latency and local cloud storage processing, require modular, resilient power systems, especially in areas far from traditional grids.

The humanitarian sector is also under strain. Nearly 300 million people across 72 countries needed humanitarian assistance in 2023, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, many of them in locations with fragile or nonexistent energy infrastructure.

If we do not build power systems that can reach these new frontiers, our progress will be halted — not by a lack of ambition, but by the limits of our grid.

At the edge of power, we still have a choice. But we will not for long.