The climate change business opportunities identified in a report released today are just the beginning, says the Convenor of the Ministerial Group on Climate Change, Pete Hodgson.

The report by the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development, with assistance from the Ministry of Economic Development, describes 32 potential business opportunities identified by six participating companies.

Analysis of five general areas of opportunity – commercial building energy efficiency, conversion of wood waste to energy, the Clean Development Mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol, livestock methane emission reduction and ‘climate friendly’ branding – identified possible earnings of more than $350 million a year.

“This report shows how a smart, strategic business response to climate change pays off,” Mr Hodgson said. “Businesses that look for opportunities are likely to find them, as those participating in the study have demonstrated. This will particularly be true for energy intensive firms.

“The identification of opportunities worth an estimated $350 million a year in just five areas hints at the gains that could be made across the economy by business innovators. Under the Kyoto Protocol there will be international demand for new technologies, and improvements to existing ones, that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and make more efficient use of energy. Industrial processes, consumer products and agricultural technologies will be redesigned.

“New Zealand can be a country that originates and profits from these changes if business responds to the Protocol with originality and foresight. This report shows the way. I welcome its recommendations to Government. We undertake to examine them and respond by the end of July. We congratulate the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development for its contribution.”

The NZBCSD was assisted by the Ministry of Economic Development in preparing the report.

The report is available on www.nzbcsd.org.nz