2020 Corporate Energy & Sustainability Progress Report
With the 2020 Corporate Energy & Sustainability Progress Report, Schneider Electric has presented a new study on energy and sustainability in companies. The study aims to gain a better understanding of energy and resource management. It examines how energy management has developed into an indispensable component of integrated sustainability strategies. The study also focuses on the increased use of digital tools. Commenting on the report, Schneider Electric stated in a press release: “The Corporate Energy & Sustainability Progress Report has been developed to provide a better understanding of how companies purchase energy, manage resource demand, use data, and develop, finance and implement business efficiency and decarbonization programs.
The results come from surveys conducted by GreenBiz Research. They involved 265 professionals from companies with annual sales of at least $250 million.
The study shows that awareness of the importance of time and cost in energy procurement is apparently growing. This year, 46.5 percent of respondents cited the combination of timing and price volatility as the biggest challenge. A year earlier, only 29 percent said that strategic energy procurement was an important approach to cost savings.
Focus on climate change
In 51.5 percent of the companies surveyed, energy and sustainability initiatives are driven primarily by environmental aspects. In addition, 58 percent of the companies consider climate change to be the greatest risk to the supply of energy and resources. Schneider Electric’s press release states that measures to mitigate climate change and global warming are a greater focus of business activities than ever before.
Digital technologies
It is considered a major challenge to control and manage the enormous amount of available energy and sustainability data. Therefore companies are increasingly willing to invest in digital technologies. The study shows that 37 percent of those surveyed currently use intelligent IoT devices such as meters or sensors. This represents a doubling compared to the previous year.
As the study results make clear, the corresponding investments have a positive effect on companies.
Source: www.kloepfel-consulting.com