Why do companies save energy?

Good question. Johnson Controls recently conducted a survey of 1,250 executives, asking about their views on energy costs and attitudes about energy efficiency. The Executive Summary points out that most are pessimistic about rising energy costs, and that they tend to be motivated more by cost-cutting than by pure environmental concern. Most remain fairly conservative both about what measures they have already implemented and what they are willing to try in the near future. This is a hardly surprising mix of motives and actions given the structure of American capitalism at this time. Of course, all things can change. In the meantime, something is better than nothing. Johnson Controls intends to conduct this survey annually. I wonder how the trends will shift over time, if they indeed repeat it regularly.