© istockphoto.com

So we’re into week 2 of the US/Israeli attack on Iran and the Strait of Hormuz is still blockaded. Oil and gas prices are continuing to rise, while the anti-Net Zero voices contort themselves into an argument that we should deepen our reliance on fossil fuels (because more smoking cures cancer, right?). To quote Bill McKibben: “Sunlight travels 93 million miles to reach the earth; none of them through the Strait of Hormuz.”

So while the national and international debate rolls on, what can organisations do to insulate themselves from the geopolitics of fossil fuels? Here’s an outline plan:

• A big energy efficiency drive: if you haven’t already switched to LED lighting, optimised compressed air systems, upgraded control, monitoring and reporting systems and run behavioural change programmes, then go and do it – actually, even if you have, go and do it again.
• Embrace renewables: Probably the best mechanism is a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) where a company installs solar panels for you and agrees a long term (5-10 year) pricing mechanism.
• Electrify fleet: even if you are buying electricity from the grid which will still be suspect to price shocks, the much lower running costs compared to petrol/diesel will make the return on investment much better.
• Decarbonise your supply chain: much of what you can do to cut your scope 3 emissions is often going to cut your purchase costs. Work with suppliers to find win-win solutions, or if they won’t play ball, find a supplier that will.

The reason why we are getting this surge in anti-renewables/anti-Net Zero rhetoric is because vested interests are starting to lose their grip on the energy system. Their cries of pain are a sign of success. Sensible people will use this crisis as a spur to decarbonise further and faster; cunning people will use it as an opportunity to bring waverers along with them. Don’t let a good crisis go to waste*.

* variously attributed to Machiavelli, Churchill or, more prosaically and probably, Rahm Emanuel