Quantum for Energy and Utilities 2026

Challenges to adopting quantum technologies in energy and utilities FIGURE 9 Strategic challenges Lack of clear business cases Long-term investment uncertaintyTechnical challenges Immature technology Complex implementation People and ecosystem Talent shortage Need for partnerships Security and compliance Harvest now, decrypt later Standards and compliance evolvingData and integration Data compatibility issues Integration with existing systems Source: World Economic Forum’s Quantum for Energy and Utilities Working Group. Community insights for technology adoption challenges Quantum adoption in the energy and utilities sector is most constrained by scalability, error rates and hardware maturity as major technical obstacles. Without addressing these challenges, commercial readiness remains limited. Economic and technical barriers are viewed as the secondary adoption challenge, with the majority of respondents identifying high implementation costs and unclear ROI as the main inhibitors to investment. Finally, talent shortages and weak industry collaboration underline that the broader quantum ecosystem is still taking shape. Together, these findings suggest that realizing quantum’s promise will depend on reducing costs, increasing ROI, advancing hardware performance and strengthening cross-sector coordination to translate early innovation into sustainable adoption. Quantum for Energy and Utilities: Key Opportunities for Energy Transition 34