The Increasingly Critical Role of Communication Networks in

Enhancing Power Grid Resilience Under Climate Change

Oliver Jung

AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, Vienna, Austria

Keywords:

Climate Change Adaptation, Power Grid Resilience, Communication Networks, 5G Networks, Distributed

Energy Resources (DERs), AI-Driven Analytics, Energy Infrastructure, Smart Grids, Network Redundancy.

Abstract:

The increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events, driven by climate change, pose signiﬁcant

challenges to the resilience of power grids worldwide. As critical infrastructure, power grids must adapt to

these disruptions while meeting the growing demands of renewable energy integration, distributed energy

resources (DERs), and energy system electriﬁcation. This position paper highlights the important role of com-

munication networks in enhancing power grid resilience and the integration of renewable energy resources.

Advanced communication technologies, such as 5G, IoT, and AI-driven analytics, enable real-time monitor-

ing, fault detection, demand forecasting, and resource optimization, all of which are crucial for grid reliability

under dynamic and extreme conditions. The paper analyses the vulnerability of electricity grids to climate-

related disruptions, examines technical solutions to these challenges and provides strategic recommendations

for the design of robust communication infrastructures. With a focus on redundancy, supporting technologies

such as 5G and AI-powered analytics and decision support, this paper makes the argument for prioritising

investment in resilient communication systems to future-proof power grids. By presenting communication

networks as an essential part of grid modernisation, this paper underlines their crucial role in ensuring reli-

able, efﬁcient and adaptable energy systems in the face of climate change.

1 INTRODUCTION

As climate change progresses, the frequency and in-

tensity of extreme weather events such as storms,

ﬂoods and heatwaves are increasing, putting pressure

on electricity grid infrastructure like never before.

A reliable electricity supply is essential for modern

society, but these climate-related disruptions are in-

creasingly threatening the stability, reliability and re-

silience of the grids. Overcoming these challenges

requires new concepts for the design, operation and

maintenance of electricity grids.

Central to this shift is the role of communication

networks. These networks provide the infrastructure

needed for real-time monitoring, control, and coordi-

nation of grid operations, enabling utilities to detect

faults, respond to disruptions, and manage distributed

energy resources (DERs). With the increasing use of

renewable energy sources, the electriﬁcation of key

sectors and the decentralisation of power grids, com-

munication networks have evolved from secondary

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0483-1605

components to indispensable building blocks for grid

stability.

This position paper argues that communication

networks are key to increasing the resilience of elec-

tricity grids to the effects of climate change. It ex-

plores the growing vulnerabilities posed by climate-

driven disruptions and examines how advanced com-

munication technologies—such as 5G networks, IoT-

enabled devices, and AI-driven analytics—can help

overcome these challenges. Furthermore, it outlines

key principles for designing robust, multi-layered

communication infrastructures that ensure the grid’s

reliability under both normal and extreme conditions.

Section 2 outlines the motivation and background to

this paper by examining the impact of climate change

on electricity grids and the overall role of communica-

tion networks in managing electricity grids. Section 3

analyses how communication networks contribute to

overcoming the challenges in electricity grids caused

by climate change. Section 4 gives recommendations

on how to tackle the issue before section 5 summa-

rizes and concludes.

By framing communication networks as a corner-

180

Jung, O.

The Increasingly Critical Role of Communication Networks in Enhancing Power Grid Resilience Under Climate Change.

DOI: 10.5220/0013481500003953

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Smart Cities and Green ICT Systems (SMARTGREENS 2025), pages 180-187

ISBN: 978-989-758-751-1; ISSN: 2184-4968

stone of modern power grids, this paper aims to pro-

vide actionable insights and strategic recommenda-

tions to strengthen grid resilience in the face of an

increasingly volatile climate.

2 BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT

The number of extreme weather events is increas-

ing world wide. The frequency of events like ﬂoods,

droughts, heat waves, storms and heavy rainfall is

growing and effecting also critical infrastructures like

power grids and communication networks. Figure 1

shows the increasing number of weather-related out-

ages in the United States in between the years 2000

and 2021 (Carvallo and Casey, 2024). To adapt to

these environmental changes and mitigate their im-

pact, infrastructure operators must explore innova-

tive strategies to enhance their systems. In order to

keep outage times low and speed up asset manage-

ment processes, they have to reconsider and upgrade

their infrastructure. This growing challenge high-

lights the importance of resilient communication sys-

tems, driving the need for investments in upgrading

and strengthening these networks.

100

120

140

160

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020

Weather-related power outages

Figure 1: Number of weather related power outages.

Power and communication networks are not only

the most important critical infrastructures for society,

but also play an important role when it comes to deal-

ing with climate change. However, when considering

the resilience of both systems, the interdependence of

communication networks and power grids is a criti-

cal issue that needs to be carefully considered, par-

ticularly as the number of severe weather events that

can potentially cause disruption to both systems is in-

creasing. The main issue is that failures in one infras-

tructure may cascade to the other infrastructure and

vice versa. The power grid equipment is managed and

controlled via telecommunication systems, which in

turn depend on the power grid for their power supply.

2.1 Climate Change and Power Grids

The electricity grid is affected by climate change in

many ways. Various types of severe weather events

can cause disruptions to the electricity grid infrastruc-

ture, some examples of which are addressed below.

Heatwaves and rising temperatures are directly af-

fecting the efﬁciency of transmission and distribution

systems since the equipment’s power rating and the

induced energy losses depend on temperature (Ward,

2013). At the same time energy consumption is in-

creasing because of increased needs for cooling. In

general, energy consumption for heating and cool-

ing is heavily inﬂuenced by temperature ﬂuctuations.

With climate change, we expect not only a change

in overall consumption, but also a change in seasonal

consumption patterns (Gonc¸alves et al., 2024).

Strong winds can cause faults and damage to over-

head lines, e.g. if trees fall on the lines or power poles

collapse in extremely strong winds. The experience

from storms in Europe shows that the majority of cus-

tomer disconnections are due to trees damaging dis-

tribution networks, and only the most severe storms

cause damage to the transmission grid. However, it

is not expected that there will be a signiﬁcant change

in extreme wind-related events in most European re-

gions (European Commission. Joint Research Cen-

tre., 2020).

Heavy rain is usually accompanied by strong

winds or lightning, which pose a greater risk of dis-

ruption than the rain itself. The consequences of long

periods of heavy rain can have a more serious im-

pact on the electricity grids, as they can trigger ﬂood-

ing or landslides. While ﬂoods threaten power grid

equipment such as switchgear, transformers and con-

trol cabinets in substations, landslides pose a major

threat to overhead lines, but can also damage under-

ground cables.

While increasingly exposed to severe weather

events, electricity grids are at the same time under-

going a massive transformation in their structure be-

cause of the need for carbon-free energy generation

and the increasing integration of renewable energy

sources into power grids. Grids are shifting from a

hierarchical infrastructure dominated by a few large

power plants to a decentralized system comprising

numerous smaller entities like rooftop PV systems, or

small wind and hydro power. While controlling large

power plants was relatively straightforward for plant

operators - sometimes even achievable through simple

phone calls to plant personnel - managing decentral-

ized systems requires more sophisticated and also au-

tomated control mechanisms that require secure and

reliable communication networks.

The Increasingly Critical Role of Communication Networks in Enhancing Power Grid Resilience Under Climate Change

181

New challenges are also arising on the demand

side due to the ongoing electriﬁcation of energy sys-

tems, e.g. through heat pumps and the spread of elec-

tric vehicles. The resulting increased demand and

the volatility of electricity generated from natural re-

sources such as wind and solar require advanced con-

trol mechanisms to balance demand and consump-

tion. This means that there are even more compo-

nents in the electricity grid that need to be commu-

nicated with. With demand-side management, it will

be possible to leverage the ﬂexibility of these loads to

consume electricity during periods of availability or

when there is a surplus in production.

Wired and wireless communication technologies

are thus playing a crucial role in optimizing power

consumption and enabling more intelligent grids

within the evolving digital landscape. They are an

enabler for reliable control of decentralised genera-

tion and controllable consumption and they have to

support communication with a large number of dig-

ital devices - PV installations, heat pumps, charging

stations.

Table 1 shows the extreme weather conditions and

how they effect the power grid and the communica-

tion networks.

2.2 Communication Networks in Power

Grids

Communication networks are the backbone of mod-

ern power grids as they enable many applications that

are already indispensable today and will become even

more important in the future. While functions such

as real-time monitoring, fault detection and grid au-

tomation are already commonplace in transmission

grids, the distribution grid is currently developing

into a more intelligent grid, partly due to the require-

ments resulting from upgrading the grid to accommo-

date more electricity from renewable energy sources.

Communication networks must ensure that data can

be exchanged in between various components of the

grid, from power generation facilities to transmission

systems, distribution networks, and end-users in an

efﬁcient and reliable manner.

The different smart grid applications come how-

ever with different requirements concerning delay,

bandwidth and connected number of devices. While

fault detection and grid protection require allow only

for minor delays in the order of milliseconds, appli-

cations like smart metering have relieved timing re-

quirements, as data is often only exchanged only once

per day. When considering grid reconﬁguration and

load curtailment this is usually in the order of min-

utes, or even days with forward planning.

Depending on the segment of the power grid and

the communication network, various technologies are

employed, each with distinct characteristics and vary-

ing levels of risk during extreme weather events.

Many distribution system operators manage their own

communication networks, with network nodes typi-

cally co-located at primary or secondary substations.

The wide-area network connecting primary sub-

stations spreads over a larger area can be implemented

as a fully meshed ﬁber-optic network, where each

substation is directly interconnected with others. This

topology provides a high level of reliability and re-

silience by providing multiple redundant paths for

data exchange also if a single link is failing. Due to

the structure the network can reroute data through al-

ternative paths. Fully meshed support high data rates,

low latency, and robust fault tolerance, all essential

for real-time grid monitoring and control.

Secondary substations can be connected further on

to primary substations using a star topology based on

ﬁber-optic or copper cables. If cabling is to cumber-

some also wireless communication technologies are

being used. Thus, secondary substations can also be

connected using radio links or mobile radio such as

LTE 450, which brings beneﬁts e.g. concerning cov-

erage (Caldeira et al., 2017) or 5G mobile networks

(Bhat, 2024).

Customer premises can ﬁnally connected to the

secondary substation via power line communication

(PLC) (Abrahamsen et al., 2021) or mobile radio like

5G. Controllable devices in the customer domain in-

clude home PV installations, heat pumps or electric

vehicle charge stations.

Just as power grids communication networks are

affected by climate change in many different ways

(Horrocks et al., 2010). Rising temperatures can in-

crease the risk of overheating in data centres, ex-

changes and base stations. Heavy and extensive pre-

cipitation can cause ﬂooding of equipment and re-

duce the quality of wireless services. Strong wind can

cause damage to all overground transmission infras-

tructure. Table 1 provides and overview of how com-

munication networks are prone to disruptions due to

extreme weather events.

However, integrating grid components into com-

munication networks also introduces cyber security

risks, including unauthorized access, data manipula-

tion, and cyberattacks (e.g., malware, DDoS, or ran-

somware). A compromised network can disrupt grid

operations, potentially causing blackouts, equipment

damage, and safety hazards. Safeguarding power

grids requires robust encryption, advanced intrusion

detection, system redundancy, and regular security

updates.

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182

Table 1: Impact of severe weather conditions.

Weather condi-

tions

Effects on the Power Grid Impact on Communication Networks

Heat waves Increased electricity demand due to

cooling systems (air conditioning).

Overheating of data centers and commu-

nication equipment, leading to reduced

efﬁciency or failures.

Reduced efﬁciency and capacity of

power plants (especially thermal and nu-

clear).

Signal degradation in wireless networks

due to thermal effects on electronic com-

ponents.

Overheating of grid infrastructure, such

as transformers and cables, leading to

outages.

Increased energy demands for cooling

communication equipment, risking net-

work downtime.

Reduced water availability for hy-

dropower plants, lowering electricity

production.

Soil shrinkage affecting underground

communication lines, leading to in-

creased vulnerability to damage.

Heavy Rainfall Flooding of substations, transformers,

and other critical infrastructure.

Damage to underground cables and com-

munication hubs.

Risk of landslides damaging transmis-

sion and distribution lines.

Interruption of ﬁbre optic cables and un-

derground lines due to ground move-

ment.

Interruption in fuel supply chains for

power generation plants

Increased risk of connectivity loss due to

damaged network infrastructure.

Heavy Snowfall Damage to transmission and distribution

lines caused by snow load on power lines

or falling trees.

Snow can weigh down antennas and ca-

bles, leading to breakages or collapses.

Flooding Permanent damage to low-lying grid in-

frastructure, causing prolonged outages.

Submersion of communication towers,

ﬁber-optic cables, and critical nodes,

leading to widespread outages.

Increased maintenance costs to repair

water-damaged equipment.

Corrosion of equipment exposed to

ﬂoodwaters, shortening its lifespan.

Stronger Storms Damage to transmission and distribution

lines due to high winds or falling trees.

Physical damage to communication tow-

ers and antennas.

Increased frequency of power outages

and repair costs.

Disruptions in wireless networks due to

alignment issues caused by strong winds.

Disruptions in renewable energy

sources, such as wind turbines, due to

extreme wind speeds.

Loss of connectivity due to damaged in-

frastructure and power outages at net-

work hubs.

3 THE ROLE OF

COMMUNICATION

NETWORKS IN ADDRESSING

CLIMATE CHALLENGES

Communication networks in electricity grids play a

crucial role in grid monitoring and control. They also

pave the way for the integration of technological inno-

vations that enable utilities to efﬁciently manage de-

centralised energy resources. The following section

provides an overview of the functions and technolo-

gies employed in these communication networks.

3.1 Real-Time Monitoring and Data

Collection

Communication networks support Supervisory Con-

trol and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems, allow-

ing operators to monitor and control grid operations

remotely (Kamwa and Johnson, 2023). This was one

of the key drivers for utilities to deploy communica-

tion network technology. SCADA systems allow grid

operators to remotely monitor and control electric-

ity transmission and distribution and to interact with

substation equipment from the control room. Thus

SCADA systems contribute signiﬁcantly to enhanced

efﬁciency of the power grid experience nowadays.

The Increasingly Critical Role of Communication Networks in Enhancing Power Grid Resilience Under Climate Change

183

One of the challenges that electricity grids are

increasingly facing is the uncertainty caused by

inverter-based generation (Crivellaro et al., 2020).

Inverter-based sources such as photovoltaic systems

and wind turbines do not have the natural inertia of

synchronous generators, which makes grid stability,

frequency regulation and voltage control more difﬁ-

cult, especially in the event of sudden ﬂuctuations in

generation or demand. One way to deal with the un-

certainties of modern renewable energy grids is to use

decision support tools with real-time capabilities that

require continuous, up-to-date measurements. More

comprehensive data in real time are a critical enabler

for artiﬁcial intelligence (AI) with proven capabilities

in decision support complex scenarios.

Communication networks enable the seamless

transmission of real-time data from sensors and mon-

itoring systems to control centers, facilitating rapid

decision-making and coordination. Reliable commu-

nication support the integration of advanced technolo-

gies like artiﬁcial intelligence (AI) and IoT devices,

which rely on robust data exchange to optimize re-

sponses in complex scenarios. In essence, the avail-

ability of robust communication is the backbone for

grid monitoring and control.

3.2 Fault Detection and System

Recovery

Communication networks are essential for the ability

of modern power grids to maintain reliability and re-

silience in case of faults. They are an enabler for deal-

ing with different kinds of faults in the grid by gath-

ering grid status information required for fault local-

ization, fault prediction, and fault isolation in order to

prevent cascading failures. Faults in energy systems

lead to dangerous overvoltages, device failures and

power outages, which impair the reliability of the sys-

tem and result in ﬁnancial losses for the operator. To

move from the reactive and inefﬁcient maintenance

approaches to a more proactive maintenance strategy,

fault prediction plays an important role.

They also help in reducing grid recovery times

through remote control and real-time coordination

(Purushottam Kumar Maurya, 2024). AI-driven self-

healing grids can signiﬁcantly reduce downtime, im-

prove grid resilience, and enhance the reliability

of power supply. By analyzing grid measurement

data these algorithms can identify patterns indicat-

ing faults or anomalies. Thus it is possible to detect

or even predict potential disruptions in real-time and

to enable automated responses such as fault isolation

and rerouting power. This approach ensures faster re-

covery and minimizes the impact of outages on con-

sumers and critical infrastructure.

Intra and inter substation communication net-

works are also important for teleprotection where cir-

cuit breakers automatically disconnect lines e.g. in

case of earth faults.

3.3 Renewable Energy Integration

Communication networks play a crucial role in man-

aging intermittent renewable energy sources through

smart grid technologies. These networks facilitate

real-time data exchange, enhance energy distribution

efﬁciency, and improve grid stability, which are es-

sential for integrating renewable energy into existing

power systems.

Communication networks enable the transmission

of real-time monitoring data from the grid, includ-

ing renewable energy generation facilities such as so-

lar parks or wind turbines, to grid operators. This

data includes, for example, information on power

generation, weather conditions and the status of the

plants, allowing operators to predict variations and

adjust grid operations accordingly. Renewable en-

ergy sources are often smaller, distributed and decen-

tralized entities. Communication networks link these

Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) with central-

ized and decentralized grid management systems, en-

abling coordinated control. This ensures that energy

generated from multiple small-scale entities is effec-

tively integrated and distributed.

The growing share of volatile renewable energy

generation from wind turbines and photovoltaic (PV)

installations presents signiﬁcant challenges for both

distribution and transmission systems. Distribution

system operators (DSOs) must handle increased gen-

eration capacities, which can cause over-voltage is-

sues, especially during periods of high solar gener-

ation and low local demand. These challenges can

be mitigated through grid expansion, the adoption of

advanced grid technologies, or by controlling feed-

in power using measures such as curtailment or ﬂexi-

ble grid management. Transmission system operators

(TSOs), on the other hand, are typically responsible

for maintaining the balance between electricity sup-

ply and demand across the grid. During periods of

high renewable energy production, excessive supply

may arise, requiring regulation through curtailment

or other grid management strategies to ensure system

stability. While there will be slight increase of so-

lar photovoltaic (PV) energy across in European (Hou

et al., 2021) there is a risk that also weak wind phases

will increase (European Commission. Joint Research

Centre., 2020). For curtailment measures on both the

demand side and the supply side, reliable communica-

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184

tion networks are required that can reach a large num-

ber of installations.

4 STRATEGIC

RECOMMENDATIONS

To ensure the resilience of the power grid in the face

of emerging climate change challenges, the reliabil-

ity and functionality of the communication networks

within the power grids are critical. Many factors need

to be considered when modernising utility communi-

cation networks in order to be prepared for the chal-

lenges of climate change - extreme weather events,

decentralised energy generation and electriﬁcation of

the energy system. The communications failures that

occurred during severe storms such as Hurricane Ka-

trina in the US highlight the importance of the key

principle of resilience in the design and evaluation of

a utility’s telecommunications network (Khalid et al.,

2023).

In addition to the purely technical measures dis-

cussed below, operator training is also crucial for

minimising the impact of storms on electricity and

communication networks. Well-trained personnel can

quickly assess risks, implement emergency proto-

cols, and restore services efﬁciently during events like

heavy rain, storms, or heat waves.

4.1 Network Availability and

Redundancy

Many utilities rely, at least in part, on commercial

communications infrastructure, which is more sus-

ceptible to disruption during severe weather events.

Commercial providers are usually not able to pro-

vide redundant communication paths to equipment

and do not have backup generators to power com-

munications equipment such as base stations in the

event of a power outage. Thus, grid operators of-

ten also run their own private communication net-

work that connects important primary substations in

an redundant manner by e.g. using a fully meshed

network. Private networks for grid operators perform

better than commercial providers as more stringent re-

quirements are applied that commercial providers do

not follow. However, secondary substations are of-

ten linked to the primary substation using a simple

star topology. The star topology is cost-effective and

straightforward but can create vulnerabilities because

a link failure can disrupt communication with the con-

nected substation. However, commercial providers

are used when it is not cost effective to deploy a ded-

icated utility-owned networks. Apart from the issue

of back-up power supply in general, this dependency

can lead to problems such as a lack of control.

As the control of customer equipment becomes

increasingly important, these systems will also be

connected through commercial network operators or

Power Line Communication (PLC), with the data con-

centrator typically located in the secondary substa-

tion. This makes robust connections to secondary

substations critically important. To enhance reliabil-

ity, operators should support redundant communica-

tion paths further downstream, e.g. extending to sec-

ondary substations.

To implement such redundancy and diversity in

communication, multi-layered communication path-

ways—such as ﬁber optics, wireless, and satel-

lite—can be utilized. These pathways ensure contin-

uous operation even during extreme weather events

or infrastructure failures, improving the overall re-

silience of the grid.

4.2 5G Networks

A wireless communication technology that is for sev-

eral reasons ideally suited to support communication

for power grids are 5G networks. Private 5G net-

works can offer low latency (down to 1 millisecond),

high reliability and bandwidth and are thus well suited

for power grid applications that require real-time data

transmission and decision making. Several European

countries have allocated frequency spectrum dedi-

cated to private networks to enable critical infrastruc-

ture sectors, such as power grids, to deploy their own

5G networks (European 5G Observatory, 2024). 5G

networks also introduce a technology called slicing.

A single 5G network can be divided into multiple vir-

tual slices tailored to speciﬁc performance require-

ments. Different slices can thus be establishes to sup-

port different kinds of power applications. One slice

could be dedicated to real-time grid monitoring, en-

suring reliable, low-latency communication.

A 5G networks are also capable to support ad hoc

networking, a decentralized type of wireless network

within the 5G framework where devices communicate

directly with each other without depending on central-

ized infrastructure, such as a base station or core net-

work. The feature of Device-to-Device (D2D) com-

munication was originally introduced by the so called

Proximity Services (ProSe) in LTE networks in order

to allow direct communication between User Equip-

ments (UEs) without using the network infrastructure

the Sidelink (SL) interface was deﬁned. In 5G the

SL and ProSe features were adapted to support direct

discovery, direct communication, and UE-to-Network

The Increasingly Critical Role of Communication Networks in Enhancing Power Grid Resilience Under Climate Change

185

(U2N) relays. With U2N relays UE without cover-

age can used an network connected UE as a hop to

connect to 5G networks.The U2N relay feature also

supports single-hop UE-to-UE (U2U) relays, allow-

ing direct communication between UEs via a single

intermediate relay (Gamboa et al., 2023).

The feature of D2D communication was primar-

ily developed for ﬁrst responders to communicate in

scenarios where no network connection is available

due to a lack of or malfunctioning infrastructure. This

function could also be used by network operators if

lines are interrupted or cell towers collapsed during

natural disasters. Deploying 5G networks for last

mile communication in power grids is thus providing

signiﬁcant beneﬁts concerning resilience and perfor-

mance.

Utilizing 5G communication for real-time infor-

mation ﬂow and control among power grid devices is

essential. 5G can be seen as a key technology to ad-

dress current and future challenges in the energy sec-

tor because it provides ﬂexibility, reliability, cover-

age, throughput, low latency and massive device sup-

port. Smart grid technologies, such as distribution au-

tomation and network reconﬁguration, also contribute

to system reliability.

4.3 AI for Grid Resilience

Artiﬁcial Intelligence (AI) can play an important role

in enhancing the resilience of power grids by leverag-

ing its ability to process and analyze vast amounts of

real-time data. Areas of AI applications include:

• AI-driven tools use machine learning algorithms

to monitor grid infrastructure in real-time. They

can detect anomalies, such as device failures or

line faults before they develop into major outages.

Predictive maintenance models based on AI can

forecast potential failures, enabling utilities to ad-

dress issues proactively.

• AI-based methods can help in optimizing the use

of existing grid capacities while ensuring fairness.

By analysing real-time data on electricity demand

and supply AI can predict ﬂuctuations and opti-

mize load distribution across the grid. In cases

of grid congestion, AI can establish dynamic,

customer-speciﬁc energy quotas based on histor-

ical usage patterns, contractual agreements, and

available grid capacities.

• AI algorithms based on artiﬁcial neural network

are used for solar forecasting is used and the re-

sulting PV power generation (Pedro and Coimbra,

2012) in order to enable a more reliable and cost-

effective integration into the grid.

Governments and utilities should fund and adopt

AI systems to enable predictive maintenance, detect

vulnerabilities, and optimize grid performance during

extreme weather events.

4.4 Decentralized Decision-Making

A key aspect of increasing this resilience is decen-

tralised decision-making, which enables local units to

make decisions autonomously without having to rely

on central control. Decentralised systems can con-

tinue to operate autonomously in the event of a cen-

tral control centre failure. This increases the relia-

bility of the network and ensures that the power sup-

ply is not interrupted. Decentralised decision-making

is a key aspect of self-healing networks that are able

to automatically detect, isolate and correct faults in

order to maintain network operation. The use of AI

techniques can play an essential role here (Purushot-

tam Kumar Maurya, 2024). Decentralised decision-

making enables faster response times and better adap-

tation to dynamic conditions, which is essential for

coping with the effects of climate change.

5 CONCLUSIONS

As climate change increases the frequency and inten-

sity of extreme weather events, reliable communica-

tion networks have become indispensable for ensur-

ing the continuous operation and resilience of power

grids. They enable real-time monitoring, control, and

recovery processes critical for modern energy sys-

tems.

The integration of advanced communication tech-

nologies, such as 5G, IoT, and edge computing, al-

lows utilities to enhance grid operations by improving

data collection, low-latency communication, and de-

centralized decision-making. These technologies pro-

vide the adaptability needed to respond swiftly to dy-

namic and unpredictable climate conditions.

Deploying redundant and multi-layered communi-

cation pathways (ﬁber optics, wireless, satellite) is es-

sential to ensure connectivity during extreme weather

or infrastructure failures. Resilient communication

networks minimize the impact of disruptions, sup-

porting both grid operations and disaster recovery ef-

forts.

AI and machine learning play a critical role in pre-

dicting failures, optimizing energy distribution, and

enabling predictive maintenance. These tools lever-

age communication networks to gather and process

vast amounts of real-time data, ensuring proactive

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186

rather than reactive responses to potential grid chal-

lenges.

Communication networks facilitate the integra-

tion of decentralized energy resources (DERs), mi-

crogrids, and renewable energy sources, which are

increasingly essential in the transition to a more sus-

tainable and resilient energy system. Reliable connec-

tivity ensures that these distributed assets can operate

harmoniously within the larger grid.

Strengthening grid communication infrastructure

must be prioritized in energy policies and investment

strategies. Governments, utilities, and stakeholders

need to collaborate on standardizing communication

technologies and ensuring interoperability to enhance

resilience on a global scale.

Enabling intelligent decision-making at the edges

of the power grid, instead of relying solely on con-

trol centers, is important, especially during extreme

weather events were the connection to the control cen-

ter can fail.

Addressing grid resilience in the context of cli-

mate change requires a holistic approach, combining

robust communication networks with smart grid tech-

nologies, predictive analytics, and sustainable energy

integration. This approach will ensure power grids

remain reliable, efﬁcient, and adaptive in the face of

evolving climate challenges.

Communication networks are no longer a sec-

ondary consideration but a cornerstone of modern,

climate-resilient power grids. Investing in advanced,

secure, and resilient communication technologies is

essential to meeting the dual challenges of climate

adaptation and energy transition.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The presented work is conducted in the research

project INFRADAPT which is funded by the Austrian

Climate and Energy Fund and is being carried out as

part of the Energy Research Programme 2022.

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