Less than a third of businesses have a ‘formalised energy strategy’

New research has revealed that only 29% of businesses in the UK and Ireland consider themselves to have a formalised energy strategy in place, and far fewer have specific targets or budgets in place to support their energy ambitions.

The study also revealed that despite half (52%) of respondents citing having back-up in the event of a power outage as very important, just 18% have specific targets in place to address this.

The research was commisioned by Centrica Business Solutions, who questioned over 1000 businesses from the UK, Ireland, US, Canada, Germany and Italy.

The study adds that only 16% of businesses have set targets to support the link between sustainable energy use and brand image despite being identified by almost half (49%) as very important.

It wasn’t a totally gloomy outlook, however, as most of the businesses that responded said they will take control of their own energy use by generating a quarter of their electricity onsite by 2025, with 77% of businesses in the UK and Ireland predicting this change will take place in just seven years.

Alan Barlow, Director of UK & Ireland at Centrica Business Solutions, said: ‘It’s a great sign that businesses in the UK and Ireland are really forward thinking when it comes to their energy.

‘Taking control of their energy use is clearly important to them, and companies think they’ll be on the road to achieve this in a short space of time.

‘This is where an energy strategy comes into play. Many of the global challenges facing businesses – emissions targets, risk reduction and increased onsite generation – can be addressed through better energy management.

‘But getting an energy strategy right is key to unlocking these benefits, and achieving that ambitious 2025 prediction. Firms need to ensure that the energy challenges they have identified are covered in their strategies and have clearly defined actions, targets and budgets against them.’