Energy Transition as an Architectural Problem: Designing the Future Power System

The contemporary energy transition is often framed as a problem of technology adoption. Yet the most persistent failures observed in practice rarely stem from the absence of a single technology. They emerge from misalignments among layers: physical dynamics, control and protection, system operation, market design, planning processes, regulatory incentives, and institutional capabilities. This paper adopts a system-architecture perspective, synthesizing control, operation, planning, and institutional layers. It proposes a design-oriented lens: to treat the energy transition as an architectural problem. Architecture here means the disciplined design of interfaces, responsibilities, and invariants across layers of a complex socio-technical system. From this standpoint, decarbonization is not only an asset mix shift but a redefinition of system services—frequency stability, short-circuit strength, voltage control, inertia-related behavior, and resilience—under converter-interfaced dominance. The paper synthesizes foundational insights from low-inertia control literature and resilience frameworks, and translates them into a concise set of design principles and an actionable checklist for planners, operators, regulators, and project developers.