Uche Cecil Izuora
About 90 per cent of global businesses are ready to electrify their operations by 2035 amid geopolitical instability fueling volatility in fossil fuel supply and prices, a new survey showed on Monday.
The polling, conducted by consultancy Public First across key economies and emerging markets, was commissioned by E3G, We Mean Business Coalition, and the Global Renewables Alliance.
The survey in late April asked 1,994 business CEOs, VPs, directors, or senior-level management of medium and large organizations in 18 markets how they feel about electrification amid the oil and gas supply disruption at the Strait of Hormuz. The survey was conducted in Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Nigeria, the Philippines, Poland, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
A total of 90 per cent of respondents expect their operations to be electrified by 2035, 91 per cent of business leaders say electrification would improve energy security, and 79 per cent believe instability has made their own business shift to electrification more urgent.
Most business leaders also said that transitioning to a renewables-based electricity system in their country is likely to boost economic growth and make their business more competitive. But a very large share of 72 per cent of survey participants noted that government policies are moving too slowly on electrification to support the pace businesses need. A total of 62 per cent of business leaders indicated they would move their operations if their government did not offer enough support to electrify their operations.
“This is not the first fossil fuel crisis, and it will not be the last,” José Manuel Entrecanales, Chairman and CEO at Spain’s ACCIONA, said, commenting on the survey.
“The lesson is becoming increasingly clear: dependence on imported fuels is a strategic vulnerability and an unnecessary burden on the balance of payments of countries that do not produce fossil fuels.”