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Survey Says the World is in Favour of Wind Energy by Staff Modern Power Systems, September 16, 2012

Two global studies commissioned by Vestas show that 85% of consumers want more renewable energy and 49% show a willingness to pay more for products made with renewable energy, while corporations are continuing to show preference for investing in renewable energy.

This data is drawn from two global surveys: the Global Consumer Wind Study 2012 (GCWS), an annual survey produced by TNS Gallup, about consumers' preferences for renewable energy, and the Corporate Renewable Energy Index Report 2012 (CREX), an index of companies that use renewable energy voluntarily, prepared by Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

The CREX study found global investment in new renewable capacity has continued to rise. In 2011 net investment in renewable power capacity outpaced that of fossil fuel generation ($237 billion versus $223 bn).

The GCWS showed that 45% of consumers surveyed perceive climate change as one of the top three challenges facing the world today while 62% of respondents say they would be more willing to buy products from brands using wind energy.

"The evidence presented by the surveys is extremely encouraging, clearly showing that consumers are demanding more renewable energy in the grid and are showing a willingness to pay a premium price for products made with renewable energy," says Morten Albaek, Vestas Group senior vice president of Marketing.

Vestas believes that private industry, specifically corporations, are part of the solution towards meeting the world's rapidly rising demand for energy without increasing dangerous carbon emissions. "The trend of private companies investing in renewable energy is very positive," says Mr Albaek. "We have already seen many companies, such as IKEA, purchasing wind turbines as part of a commitment to get all of its energy from renewable sources, and recently Aviva, the UK's largest insurance group invested in a wind power plant in Spain as they wanted a low risk, strong yield investment."

Vestas is conducting a campaign, its 2012 Energy Transparency campaign launched in Rio De Janerio last month, aimed at bringing this data to greater public attention by 'increasing the transparency of consumers' energy preferences globally and influencing companies' energy procurement'. The campaign will feature events in London, New York, Hamburg, and Sydney over the coming weeks.