Error deleting columns and rows in excel

Hi guys

Excel error message - there is not enough memory to complete this action. Try using less data or closing other applications

Power Bi error message - Failed to save modifications to the server. Error returned: The total number of columns in the model is 16406, which exceeds the limit of 16000. '

Im having these issues with deleting columns and rows in excel and at first i thought it was because of large formulas considering all the columns so i shortened it to include less columns.
I also deleted more than half the data and it still is giving me this error.

Have already changed the options tab to ignore other applications that uses DDE

Both the files are on company’s network drive

It also resulted in issues with Power Bi dashboard.

Im pretty new to this and i have been unable to fix it.

Could someone help me find the fix and explain why this happens in the first place?

Thank you!