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Tuesday, April 12, 2005 |
[ClimateBiz]: As
a result of a shareholder resolution filed with the Ford Motor Co., the
country's second largest automaker has announced it will issue a
first-of-its-kind comprehensive report later this year that will
examine the business implications of reducing greenhouse gas emissions
from Ford vehicles -- as well as the facilities that produce them. The
climate risk report will also examine impacts from possible policy and
regulatory changes.
Building on previous reporting of
greenhouse emissions from its manufacturing facilities, Ford agreed
today to examine the strategic and financial implications of various
policy and regulatory greenhouse gas reducing scenarios on the
company's business over the next five to ten years. The report will
focus primarily on the company's products and facilities in its core
North American market that accounts for roughly two-thirds of its
annual sales. The Ford report also will assess the evolving role of new
technologies such as hybrid and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles in light of
the climate change issue.
'With this agreement, we have turned
the corner on a pivotal and pressing issue, as more of our nation's
leading companies are getting the message that it is in the best
interest of investors and the bottom line to consider and prepare for
the financial and business implications of climate change,' said
Connecticut State Treasurer Denise L. Nappier. 'I congratulate Bill
Ford for his recognition that planning for climate change is not merely
an environmental issue, but a key business issue. As a long-term
investor, I am hopeful that where Ford leads, others will follow.'
Shareholders in the driver's seat -- and looking beyond the next quarter! What a concept.
An identical shareholder resolution is still pending before General Motors, the world[base ']s largest automaker.
9:10:37 PM 
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[GreeenBiz.com]: Energy Management and Shareholder Value
This report highlights
the growing body of evidence showing
that companies that strategically manage their energy use across their
various divisions and facilities can enjoy bottom-line benefits...
[including]... reduced operating costs, increased productivity and
sales, reduced regulatory costs, reduced downtime, and enhanced image.
Energy use represents one of the
largest operating expenses in many businesses, and can be a source of
bottom-line opportunity. For example, in commercial office buildings,
reducing energy use 30-percent is equivalent to increasing net
operating income and building asset value by 5-percent.
Essentially risk free, and yet so many people still leave money on the
table. (Good to seee someone talkiong about impact on building asset
value, since most of the energy conversation has been about operating
income improvements - plenty good in itself, but not the whole story.)
9:03:06 PM
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[WorldChanging.com]: It's almost enough to cause a double-take: the CEO and Chairman of Duke Energy announced that the firm will lobby for the introduction of a carbon tax in order to reduce fossil fuel use and address global warming.
'Personally, I feel the time has come to act - to take steps as a nation to reduce the carbon intensity of our economy....'
Interesting times ahead, as traditional alliances shift (conservative
Republicans moving toward renewable energy out of national security
concerns), as different industries stake out different strategic
positions on the landscape (think reinsurance vs petroleum), and as
monolithic industries split (think BP and Shell) over very different
perceptions of where viable futures lie.
12:47:21 AM
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© Copyright 2006 Gil Friend.
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