Only four out of 10 European companies invested in improving their energy efficiency in 2021, before the outbreak of war in Ukraine, reveals a study published Tuesday by the European Investment Bank (EIB).
Money spent by Old World companies on reducing their energy consumption accounted for only 10% of their total investments last year, the Luxembourg-based bank said in the 2022 edition of its annual Investment Survey.
Conducted among 13,000 companies, the study highlights that in Finland (54%) or Austria (51%), more than one company out of two has invested in 2021 to consume less energy.
Conversely, less than one in four companies have done so in Lithuania (20%) or France (24%).
Reducing energy consumption has become a key issue for households and businesses alike since the launch of the Russian military offensive in Ukraine in late February.
The war has not only jeopardized Europe’s energy supply but has also caused electricity and gas prices to soar, making bills even more expensive.
The French government has set a goal of reducing the country’s energy consumption by 10% by 2024.
In this difficult context, European firms are investing “more and more” in the field of “climate action”, says EIB Chief Economist Debora Revoltella.
Compared to 2020, the percentage of European companies that dedicate a portion of their financial resources to energy efficiency has increased by three points (from 37% to 40%).
The “shock” of the war in Ukraine “should be an additional incentive” to invest in reducing energy consumption.
In any case, European companies are ahead of their American competitors, since only 36% of the latter have spent on increasing their energy efficiency in 2021 (4 points less than in Europe).
In general, the impact of the war in Ukraine on private investment in Europe seems to be limited for the moment.
Just over 6% of companies say they will be financially constrained in 2022, a proportion that is up slightly from recent years but still lower than the 6.78% of companies under constraint in 2017.
The survey was conducted between April and July 2022 among a representative sample of 13,000 companies in the 27 member states of the European Union. A sample of U.S. companies was also surveyed for comparison purposes.
