WASHINGTON—A group of major companies that have taken a leadership role in improving energy productivity have saved $131 million and cumulatively averted the carbon dioxide emissions equivalent of running 134 coal-fired power plants for a year, according to a new report published by international non-profit The Climate Group. The companies are participants in EP100, a global corporate leadership initiative led by The Climate Group in partnership with the Alliance to Save Energy.

EP100 brings together a growing group of companies committed to increasing their energy productivity – achieving higher economic output per each unit of energy consumed. Members have avoided more than 522 million metric tons of carbon equivalent in total since their respective baseline years, according to the report, ‘Smarter Energy Use: Businesses Doing More With Less.’ The companies have saved more than $55 million in the last year alone, boosting their bottom line and increasing competitiveness.

The report finds that on average, 21 reporting member companies are already 67% of the way toward their respective energy productivity goals and are ahead of schedule. To date, they have saved more than enough energy to power Germany for a year.

EP100 now has 50 member companies with combined revenue of over $382 billion; the companies span sectors from retail and real estate to cement and automotive manufacturing.

 “Using energy more productively is essential for addressing the climate challenge, but global progress has been far too slow,” said Jason Hartke, president of the Alliance to Save Energy. “The EP100 companies featured today have stepped up to show what doing more with the energy they use really looks like, and it’s a picture of growth and success. We’ll need more leadership like this – and quickly – as the alternative is too costly to fathom.”

Helen Clarkson, CEO of The Climate Group, said, “Doing more with less energy can unlock faster decarbonization of the global economy – and the private sector holds the key. 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. The Climate Group congratulates EP100 members on leading by example – something every major company should be doing.”

The report finds:

• 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 – the equivalent of the carbon emissions from 26 coal-fired power plants in the same year;
• 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”);
• 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 said these were “very significant” or “significant” respectively).

About the Alliance to Save Energy

Founded in 1977, the Alliance to Save Energy is a nonprofit, bipartisan alliance of business, government, environmental and consumer leaders working to expand the economy while using less energy. Our mission is to promote energy productivity worldwide – including through energy efficiency – to achieve a stronger economy, a cleaner environment and greater energy security, affordability and reliability.

About The Climate Group

The Climate Group’s mission is to accelerate climate action to achieve a world of no more than 1.5°C of global warming and greater prosperity for all. We do this by bringing together powerful networks of business and governments that shift global markets and policies. We focus on the greatest global opportunities for change, take innovation and solutions to scale, and build ambition and pace. We are an international non-profit organization, founded in 2004, with offices in London, New Delhi and New York. Our business campaigns are brought to you as part of the We Mean Business coalition, and we lead business initiatives on energy productivity (EP100), renewable energy (RE100), and electric vehicles (EV100). Visit TheClimateGroup.org and follow us on Twitter @ClimateGroup and Facebook @TheClimateGroup.

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