New York: Demand for renewable energy by consumers and businesses – along with a long-term commitment to cleaner portfolios from utilities – seems to be fundamentally shifting energy attitudes and decisions, independent of federal stances, according to Deloitte's annual "Resources 2017 Study – Energy Management: Sustainability & Progress."
Technology advancements and cost declines have made renewables competitive with conventional energy, giving consumers and businesses more clean energy options and pushing utilities to offer smarter, high-tech offerings, the study says.
"The demand for clean energy has passed the point of no return. It is not only political anymore. It is an economic issue," said Marlene Motyka, U.S. and global renewable energy leader and principal, Deloitte Transactions and Business Analytics LLP.
Among the key findings:
• Sixty-three percent of residential consumers were very concerned about climate change and their personal carbon footprints. In fact, using clean energy sources was the most important energy issue among consumers, with 37 percent citing "increasing the use of solar power" (up 4 percent from 2016) as the top issue and 25 percent placing a priority on use of wind power (up 4 percent from 2016).
Millennials have been driving much of the support for renewables. Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of millennials said they were extremely or very interested in installing solar panels, up 9 percent over last year, and more than half (53 percent) were extremely or very interested in purchasing a share in a community, or "shared," solar installation.
• According to the study, energy storage could be the biggest potential game changer for renewable energy growth from consumers and businesses, as technology advances and costs decline. Forty-five percent of residential consumers said they would be more interested in installing solar panels if they could combine them with a home battery storage unit. Businesses responded similarly.
• Eighty percent of businesses viewed reducing electricity costs as essential to maintaining an image that keeps them competitive. Business motivations for energy management have gone well beyond cost cutting, with nearly half (45 percent) reporting it as a key part of corporate strategy and 9 in 10 investing about 21 percent of their total capital budgets in related programs. Six in 10 businesses now have some form of on-site electricity generation, up from 35 percent five years ago. And 33 percent plan to increase the amount of electricity they self-generate.
See also lead story on Quinn and Partners, elsewhere in this issue of IPPSO FACTO.