Hungarian companies need sustainable, renewable and alternative energy sources

Most Hungarian companies see an increasing need for sustainable, renewable and alternative energy sources amid the current challenging economic environment, though often intentions and actions were generally grossly mismatched, according to a survey by K and H Bank.

Fully 97 percent either unambiguously expressed support for sustainable energy or did so with some qualifications, according to the results of the survey released on Friday.

Levente Suba, the bank’s head of sustainability, said that whereas companies were more and more committed to environmental sustainability on paper, in practice they were woefully falling behind, noting that a mere half a percent purchased green energy, even though this would be the best way to cut their carbon footprint.

Use of renewable energy sources actually fell among the surveyed companies, as did various activities aimed at protecting the environment, with dwindling interest in energy saving, thermal insulation, and the development of environmentally conscious products. The only real positive for the environment was that companies consumed less and less paper, he said.

Meanwhile, more and more companies see sustainability as a difficulty rather than an opportunity in the current economic environment, Suba said. Raising financing was the biggest hurdle to making the transition to sustainable operations, he added.

K and H carried out its phone survey of 360 medium-sized and large companies between Oct 9 and 31.

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Featured image: illustration