Unfavourable policy and market structures in some countries are inflating prices and making it harder for companies to switch to renewable energy, according to a new report.
The ‘Going 100% renewable: how companies are demanding a faster market response’ report is the 2019 RE100 Progress and Insights Annual Report from international non-profit The Climate Group in partnership with CDP.
It tracks the progress of 216 member companies toward 100% renewable electricity.
The report found that members are increasingly opting for cost-effective sourcing methods that directly bring additional renewable energy capacity online, but policy and market structure, particularly in China and Russia, are making it tougher to tougher switch to clean power.
Despite the problems, three out of four of the RE100 members have set 100% renewables targets by 2030, with over 30 having already reached the goal.
Almost half of members (49%) are planning to partner with and influence stakeholders, such as governments and energy companies, by the end of next year, to help create markets for renewables.
Such efforts are already bringing about policy changes in South Korea and Taiwan, where to date access has been difficult, the report said.
Over a quarter of the renewable electricity sourced by members in 2018 was through direct methods that add clean power capacity to local grids.
Power purchase agreements accounted for 19%, and self-generation 4%.
Nearly two thirds (65%) of members are planning to adopt impactful procurement methods by the end of next year.
The main driver for change is acting on the growing demands of customers, shareholders and employees, with 87% of members citing customer expectations as ‘important’ or ‘very important’.
A further 76% say the same of shareholder requests, while over 50% identified benefits in terms of employee satisfaction and staff retention.
However, the business case is still significant, with 80% citing cost savings as an ‘important’ or ‘very important’ driver.
The Climate Group chief executive Helen Clarkson said: “At a time when UN research has said countries are underdelivering on climate action, leading businesses are stepping into the void left by national governments and accelerating the clean energy transition.
“With 10 years left to halve greenhouse gas emissions, it is vital that governments respond faster to rising demand for renewable energy.
“Without decisive action, countries and the energy sector risk losing out on billions of US dollars in investment from RE100 companies.”
CDP chief executive Paul Simpson said: “Corporate demand for renewable power is rapidly growing as the world moves to address the climate emergency.
“Encouragingly, we see renewable energy increasingly becoming a matter of business competitiveness in numerous markets around the world.
“Many companies are now making the shift because it makes business sense – in part due to changing expectations from their key stakeholders – be that investors, customers or employees.
“Now is the time to meet the demand and speed up the clean energy transition.”