Power firms set sustainability agenda
Power firms set sustainability agenda
A group of eight power firms have launched a manifesto to move the industry towards greater sustainability. In a report presented in New York, the firms called for concerted action in six areas, including future investments, energy efficiency and low-carbon technologies.
Called “Powering a sustainable future” the report is part of a sector-specific initiative launched by the World business council for sustainable development (WBCSD) in 2005. The report was signed by utilities ABB,EDF, Suez, Eskom, Kansai and Tokyo electric power companies, CLP holdings and Entergy corporation.
The firms stress that growing demand for electricity will have a “serious environmental impact” unless there is a “marked shift” in the way it is generated and regulated. Utilities must find ways to finance the incremental cost of low-carbon technologies, the firms say. At the same time,they call for a “new policy framework” and stronger incentives to provide long-term certainty for investments. The firms add that business and governments must reverse the trend of “declining resources” in energy research. Key future technologies are carbon capture and storage, fourth generation nuclear reactors, solar power and electricity storage systems, they say.
