Why the world's largest companies are investing in renewable energy

Is the headline for a great article just sent to us this weekend.  We'll give you the executive summary here, and link to the balance of the article.

Prepared by David Gardiner & Associates, LLC

"Large corporations are increasingly turning to renewable energy to power their operations. 

Companies are investing in renewable energy because it makes good business sense: renewable energy helps reduce long-term operating costs, diversify energy supply and hedge against market volatility in traditional fuel markets. It also enables companies to 

achieve greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction goals and demonstrate leadership on broader corporate sustainability and climate commitments.

Fifty-nine percent of the Fortune 100 and nearly two-thirds of the Global 100 

have set GHG emissions reduction commitments, renewable energy commitments 

or both. As corporations turn to renewable energy to reduce GHG emissions and 

meet specific sourcing goals, companies are driving significant new investments 

in renewable energy. Though these pockets of activity are encouraging, with 

the proper policies, companies could set even stronger renewable energy 

commitments. 

Among the combined Fortune 100 and Global 100 companies, two dozen have 

set public, voluntary renewable energy commitments. These include globally 

recognized brands like AT&T, Dow Chemical, General Motors, Google, HSBC, 

Procter & Gamble, Volkswagen and Walmart. 

Global corporate renewable energy commitments are driving global purchasing. 

For many of the Fortune 100 and Global 100 firms, action on renewable 

energy is not limited to regional or national levels; it is planned across a global 

scale. In order to meet their renewable energy targets, companies are developing 

comprehensive purchasing strategies in every market where they have a 

significant presence—often in countries core to their supply chains.

Looking at corporate targets by sector, in the Fortune 100, the Materials and 

Telecommunications sectors have the highest share of companies who have set 

both GHG and renewable energy commitments. The Industrials and Financial 

sectors have the highest share of companies that have set GHG targets only. 

The Energy sector, followed by Health Care, lags in setting either a GHG or 

renewable energy target (see chart, opposite top).

By sector in the Global 100, the vast majority of utilities have set both GHG 

and renewable energy targets. Consumer Discretionary companies lead in 

setting GHG targets, followed by Materials and Consumer Staples. The Energy, 

Healthcare and Industrials sectors lag in setting targets (see chart, opposite below).

The global transition to a lower carbon economy is accelerating due to rising 

public concern about climate change. This large-scale trend presents an 

opportunity for companies to meet corporate climate commitments and 

diversify their energy sources by purchasing and investing in renewable energy.."

This is a long but very interesting look at the win-win of moving away from traditional sources of energy, with the concurrent environmental gains, with significant financial profits.  Here's the link for the rest:  
http://assets.worldwildlife.org/publications/507/files/original/Power_Forward_FINAL_hi_res.pdf?1357935348