Global studies reveal 85% of consumers want more renewable energy

Two global studies commissioned by Vestas reveal 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 ($237bn for renewables versus
$223bn for additional fossil fuel generation).

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, Communication and Corporate Relations.

Corporations part of the solution

Vestas firmly believes 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 Morten 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.”

"The findings of the CREX report show corporations are taking an active
role in purchasing their own renewable energy directly. However the pace of
growth in companies' use of renewable energy will depend on the level of
political and regulatory support, and on further progress in the
cost-competitiveness of these technologies,” says Michael Liebreich,
Chief Executive of Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

In order to bring this important data to greater public attention, Vestas
is conducting the 2012 Energy Transparency campaign, aimed at increasing
transparency of consumers’ energy preferences globally and influencing
companies’ energy procurement, while at the same time helping to shape
the future energy mix of the world.

The 2012 Energy Transparency campaign aims to further amplify this trend
and bring it to the public-eye with comprehensive third party evidence that
on a global and local level creates transparency of the energy preferences
of consumers and the actions of corporations.

The campaign was successfully kicked off in Rio De Janeiro last month and
will feature events in London, New York, Frankfurt, and Sydney over the
coming weeks.

For more information, please contact:
Matt Whitby
Media & External Relations
Tel: +45 2250 7131
Mail: matke@vestas.com


About the CREX
The Corporate Renewable Energy Index (CREX) is an index that ranks
companies according to their voluntary renewable energy procurement.
Produced by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, the aim behind the CREX is to
clearly identify the level of renewable energy used by corporations around
the world and provide much-needed transparency to companies, investors ,
policy makers, NGOs and last but not least consumers. In 2012, the CREX
includes 389 companies from 26 countries.

The CREX main findings:

• Global investment in new renewable capacity has continued to rise. In
2011 net investment in renewable power capacity outpaced that of fossil
fuel generation ($237bn for renewables versus $223bn for additional fossil
fuel generation)
• Many companies are making a significant commitment to renew¬able
energy through direct investment in on-site generation (40% of renewable
electricity purchases in 2011).
• The voluntary procurement of renewable energy has grown in recent
years, and this is set to continue, but the pace of growth will depend on
political and regulatory support.

To download the 2012 Corporate Renewable Energy Index please go
to: http://about.bnef.com/2012/09/14/global-corporate-renewable-energy-index-crex-2012/


About the GCWS
The Global Consumer Wind Study (GCWS) is a global study, conducted by TSN
Gallup, which focuses on consumers’ preferences regarding energy, their
demand for products made with renewable energy, as well as how energy
decisions by some of the world’s largest companies affect consumer
choices. In 2012, the study was conducted among 24.000 consumers in 20
countries.

The GCWS main findings:
• 45% of consumers surveyed perceive climate change as one of the top 3
challenges facing the world today.
• 17% believe that it is the single greatest challenge facing the world
today, with only the financial crisis identified as the top challenge by
more respondents.
• 85% of consumers surveyed say they want more renewable energy
• 74% would get a more positive perception of a brand if wind energy were
the primary energy source used in its production.
• 49% of respondents express willingness to pay more for products made
with renewable energy
• 62% of respondents say they would be more willing to buy products from
brands using wind energy
• 52% of consumers believe that the transparency of the energy mix used
in product production is too low.

About Vestas
Every single day, Vestas wind turbines deliver clean energy that supports
the global fight against climate change. Wind power from Vestas’ more
than 47,000 wind turbines currently reduces carbon emissions by
approximately 55 million tons of CO2 every year, while at the same time
building energy security and independence.

Today, Vestas has delivered wind energy in more than 70 countries,
providing jobs for over 20,000 passionate people at our service and project
sites, research facilities, factories and offices all over the world. With
65 per cent more megawatts installed than our closest competitor and more
than 51 GW of cumulative installed capacity worldwide, Vestas is the world
leader in wind energy.