Smarter energy use saves companies £45 million a year
The world’s leading companies have already saved over 520 million MTCO2e, the carbon equivalent of running 134 US coal-fired power plants for a year – generating substantial business benefits, a new report reveals.
‘Smarter Energy Use: Businesses Doing More With Less’ is the first Progress and Insights Report for EP100, a global corporate leadership initiative of international non-profit The Climate Group. It brings together a growing group of energy-smart companies committed to increasing their energy productivity – achieving higher economic output per unit of energy consumed.
The report finds that on average, 21 reporting member companies (including multinationals such as Hilton and H&M) are already 67% of the way toward their respective energy productivity goals and are ahead of schedule.
To date, 21 have saved more than enough energy to power Germany for a year. Since joining EP100, 18 have also generated collective financial savings to the tune of US$131 million (£108 million) – capital that can be reinvested in clean growth – as well as wider business benefits such as increased employee productivity and a reputational boost.
The report findings in more detail:
- On average, members are increasing their energy productivity by 8% per year;
- Nine members have improved their energy productivity by 50% or more since their baseline year;
- Without energy efficiency efforts, members would be using 146 TWh more energy per year – which would take an area of forest twice the size of the UK to sequester;
- Members cited financial savings, reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and reputational benefits as their top drivers for improving energy productivity (95%, 84% and 84% of respondents respectively said these were “very significant” or “significant”);
- Many members reported payback periods of 2-4 years on their energy efficiency investments;
- Members cited high upfront costs, regulatory and policy uncertainty and competition for capital expenditure as the biggest barriers to improving energy productivity (68%, 63% and 42% of respondents respectively said these were “very significant” or “significant”).
Helen Clarkson, CEO of The Climate Group, said,
“From the boiler room to the boardroom, smarter energy use benefits a business at every level, helping to meet the growing expectations of shareholders, customers and employees while generating capital that can be reinvested in clean growth.”
Read the report here.
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