Learn > Big Business and Renewable Energy

A growing number of companies are recognizing that the market for clean energy has a bright future: strong returns on renewable-energy stocks, increased awareness of climate change, and the high price of oil suggest that those who get involved in alternative energy will be well positioned to reap early profits. Nevertheless, without clear regulatory standards and greater industry transparency, the possibility of more robust growth in this industry will likely be curbed.

A recent 2007 survey conducted by PriceWaterhouseCoopers shows that, of the 150 businesses questioned in the United Kingdom, 71 percent stated that their corporate behavior was influenced by concerns such as “meeting customer expectations, maintaining competitive advantage and making cost savings,” all stemming from climate change-related anxieties. The degree to which these anxieties have been translated into actual action, however, has varied.

There is a general belief that short-term profitability is not associated with investments in clean energy, which often require large amounts of capital. For this reason, many businesses are hesitant to adopt such energy-saving measures, or to bank big money on developing technology that is not guaranteed to be lucrative in the future. Why pay $0.05 to $0.08 for a kilowatt of wind-generated electricity when you can buy coal-generated electricity for even cheaper? Also, heavy investment in budding clean technologies can be undercut by a plummet in oil prices. However, as corporations such as Wal-Mart, Google, and Bank of America have shown, this ideology is no longer as easily accepted as it once was.

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