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The COP28 Mandate: Digital Twins as a Decarbonization Catalyst for Utilities
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The COP28 Mandate: Digital Twins as a Decarbonization Catalyst for Utilities

By October 7, 2025No Comments

Table of Content:

Introduction
COP28 and the Rising Digital Imperative
Why Digital Twins Matter for Utility Decarbonization
Challenges & Mitigations on the Path
Use Cases & Proof Points
Pratiti Technologies’ Approach: Digital Twin as a Service
Roadmap: From Pilot to Grid-Scale Twin
The Bigger Picture: Decarbonization + Digitalization
Conclusion

Introduction

As the world collectively rallies around climate action, COP28 reaffirmed a critical truth: achieving net-zero for the power and utility sector demands more than renewables and energy efficiency alone. Digital technologies, particularly digital twins, are emerging as indispensable enablers in helping utilities decarbonize, optimize operations, and transition to resilient low-carbon grids.

For utility companies, digital twins can turn data into foresight, simulate emission pathways, and guide investment decisions, all while aligning with COP28’s global pledges. In this blog, we explore how digital twins serve as catalysts in the decarbonization journey of utilities, what the COP28 mandate implies for them, and how Pratiti Technologies is positioned to help utilities adopt Digital Twin as a Service.

COP28 and the Rising Digital Imperative

At COP28, nations committed to accelerating climate action through renewable deployment and energy efficiency. The global renewables and energy efficiency pledge aims to triple renewable capacity and double efficiency gains annually by 2030.

But scaling clean energy is only part of the challenge. Utilities must also manage complexity, grid stability, integrating distributed energy resources (DERs), demand variability, and emissions from legacy assets. Digital transformation is no longer optional; it is foundational.

The summit also spotlighted how digital solutions like digital twins are gaining recognition as key enablers of climate strategies. In various global discussions, digital twins were emphasized as tools to simulate energy demand, optimize generation, and visualize decarbonization scenarios.

Thus, the COP28 mandate implicitly elevates digital twins from a niche innovation to a strategic asset for utilities committed to deep decarbonization.

Why Digital Twins Matter for Utility Decarbonization

Digital twins, virtual replicas of physical assets, processes, or systems, can mirror real-time operations, anticipate failures, and support decision-making. In the utility context, they unlock high-impact benefits:

  1. Emissions Profiling & Carbon Tracking

Utilities can simulate carbon emissions at equipment, plant, or grid levels, isolating high-emitting assets and planning mitigation pathways.

  1. Scenario Simulation & Strategy Planning

Digital twins allow utilities to test different decarbonization options, such as retiring coal units, deploying storage, or integrating renewables, before making physical investments.

  1. Operational Optimization & Demand Flexibility

By integrating real-time data, digital twins help manage load dispatch, peak shaving, volt-VAR control, and demand response, reducing both emissions and operational costs.

  1. DER / Renewable Integration & Grid Balancing

Distributed solar, wind, battery storage, and EV charging infrastructure can be modeled and coordinated within a digital twin for stable, emission-aware grid operations.

  1. Predictive Maintenance & Asset Life Extension

Extending the life of existing assets safely reduces the need for new infrastructure, thereby minimizing additional carbon footprint.

  1. Holistic Decarbonization Roadmapping

Digital twins help utilities design end-to-end decarbonization plans across generation, transmission, distribution, and consumption, offering full visibility into costs, emissions, and trade-offs.

Challenges & Mitigations on the Path

Implementing digital twins in large-scale utility systems comes with challenges. The table below outlines common barriers and how they can be mitigated.

With the right approach, these challenges can be overcome systematically, enabling sustainable and scalable digital twin deployments.

Use Cases & Proof Points

Onshore Wind Farms in Complex Terrain

A digital twin can combine SCADA data, weather forecasts, and spatial modeling to predict power output with higher accuracy, improving dispatch planning and asset utilization.

Integrated Energy System Scheduling

Digital twins for integrated electric and thermal systems can optimize day-ahead scheduling under uncertainty, achieving significant cost and energy efficiency improvements.

Buildings & Thermal Decarbonization

For large building portfolios, digital twins simulate energy use and recommend retrofit actions such as HVAC optimization, insulation improvements, and solar integration, directly supporting emission reduction goals.

These examples show that digital twins are not limited to asset monitoring, they are strategic tools for decarbonization planning and operational excellence.

Pratiti Technologies’ Approach: Digital Twin as a Service

At Pratiti Technologies, we believe in democratizing access to robust digital twin capabilities through our Digital Twin as a Service. This approach enables utilities to gain immediate value without heavy upfront investment while scaling over time.

Our Approach

  1. Consult & Roadmap

Collaborate with clients to define decarbonization goals, assess data maturity, and create a tailored roadmap.

  1. Model Design & Asset Abstraction

Build modular twin templates generation units, substations, distribution feeders, DER clusters that can be reused and scaled.

  1. Data Integration & Real-Time Sync

Integrate SCADA, sensors, GIS, and external data sources through APIs and IoT gateways for seamless synchronization.

  1. Scenario Engine & Emissions Toolkit

Develop simulation engines and carbon models to enable what-if analysis, forecasting, and optimization.

  1. Deployment & Lifecycle Management

Offer flexible deployment, cloud, on-premises, or hybrid along with version control, governance, and continuous upgrades.

  1. Operations & Optimization

Implement real-time monitoring, anomaly detection, and decision-support dashboards for operations and energy management.

  1. Scale & Expansion

Extend the twin architecture to cover new assets, regions, or operational domains, leveraging reusable templates.

Through DTaaS, utilities can transition from isolated pilots to enterprise-wide decarbonization platforms, driving measurable sustainability impact.

Roadmap: From Pilot to Grid-Scale Twin

Phase 1: Targeted Pilot

Start with one asset or operational domain, such as a renewable cluster or substation, to validate ROI and refine models.

Phase 2: Expanded Twin Domain

Integrate DER, demand response, and emission modeling across multiple plants or feeders.

Phase 3: Full Utility-Scale Digital Twin

Extend coverage across generation, transmission, distribution, and demand-side management.

Phase 4: Hybrid & Market Integration

Integrate with energy markets, carbon markets, and external forecasting systems for prescriptive decision-making and optimization.

The Bigger Picture: Decarbonization + Digitalization

The COP28 mandate is not merely a policy directive, it’s a call for action. It challenges utilities to align their digital transformation efforts with decarbonization goals. The convergence of data, AI, optimization, and simulation makes digital twins a central enabler in this mission.

By investing in Digital Twin as a Service, utilities can:

* Make data-driven emission reduction decisions.

* Test strategies and investments through virtual simulations.

* Optimize operations for both cost and carbon performance.

* Scale sustainability programs across multiple facilities.

Pratiti Technologies is proud to support utilities through this transformation, helping them reimagine their operations for a net-zero future.

Conclusion

As global attention sharpens on COP28 commitments, the role of digital twins in the energy transition is undeniable. They bridge the gap between vision and execution, offering utilities a digital foundation for sustainable growth.

With the right partners, strategy, and platform, digital twins can become the cornerstone of a decarbonized, efficient, and resilient energy ecosystem. At Pratiti Technologies, we stand ready to enable this journey, empowering utilities to lead the way toward a cleaner, smarter, and more sustainable world.

Connect with our team at insights@pratititech.com

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Nitin
Nitin Tappe

After successful stint in a corporate role, Nitin is back to what he enjoys most – conceptualizing new software solutions to solve business problems. Nitin is a postgraduate from IIT, Mumbai, India and in his 24 years of career, has played key roles in building a desktop as well as enterprise solutions right from idealization to launch which are adopted by many Fortune 500 companies. As a Founder member of Pratiti Technologies, he is committed to applying his management learning as well as the passion for building new solutions to realize your innovation with certainty.

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