South and Southeast Asia could be on its way to becoming one of the world's most energy-efficient regions, according to a new report from the American Institute for International Finance.
But it's not easy: "The region requires the limited awareness about climate-smart sustainable manufacturing practices, energy-efficient technologies, the limited capacity of technical experts, energy service companies (ESCOs), as well as the limited technical knowledge of financial institutions when it comes to the evaluation of energy efficiency and clean energy measures in the respective countries of focus," says AIF's Mehar Jauhar in a press release.
The report looked at Bangladesh, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand, and found that there are a number of barriers to energy efficiency in these countries, including a lack of government support, a lack of financial institutions willing to back initiatives, and a "lack of awareness about climate-smart sustainable manufacturing," Jauhar says.
India, meanwhile, has some of the highest energy costs in the world, according to Jauhar, who notes that the country's annual electricity bill is more than double the average in the rest of the world.
But Jauhar's research shows that businesses in these countries can save up to 30% on their energy costs by adopting greater efficiencies.
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