Energy efficiency has saved major companies $131m

A total of 50 companies have signed up to the EP100 initiative, committed to making smarter use of their energy

Some of the major companies in the world have saved around $131 million (£107m) as a result of becoming more energy efficient.

A new report from the EP100 campaign, run by The Climate Group and the Alliance to Save Energy, sets out the progress made by its members – currently standing at 50 – and significantly improved their energy productivity.

Organisations that have signed up to the initiative, including Johnson Controls, RBS, Schneider Electric, SSE and UltraTech, have committed to doubling their energy productivity within 25 years and implementing an energy management system within 10 years.

The report reveals 21 companies are already 67% of the way towards their goals and have so far saved more than enough energy to power Germany for a year.

Since joining EP100, 18 businesses have also generated collective financial savings to the tune of $131 million (£107m).

It adds smarter energy use has saved 18 companies – including LandSec, H&M and Hilton – more than $55 million (£45m) in the last year alone and 21 members have avoided more than 522 million metric tons of carbon emissions – equivalent to the emissions from 134 coal-fired power plants in the US annually.

On average, EP100 companies are increasing their energy productivity by 8% a year, with nine members achieving a 50% improvement or more annually since their baseline year.

EP100 says many members reported payback periods of two to four years on their energy efficiency investments.

Without energy efficiency efforts, members would be using 146TWh more energy per year, which would take an area of forest twice the size of the UK to sequester, the report adds.

Helen Clarkson, CEO of The Climate Group said: “Doing more with less energy can unlock faster decarbonisation 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 comes as new businesses, including Mahindra Group company Swaraj Engines, Yanbu Cement Company and Airport Authority Hong Kong.

Together, the 50 members have a combined revenue of more than $382 billion (£312bn), covering above 130 markets worldwide and spanning nine sectors from retail and real estate to cement and automotive manufacturing.

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