The proportion of UK businesses committed to achieving net zero by 2030 has nearly doubled over the last year.

Research by Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) found that the proportion has risen from 28% to 47% since it last surveyed British firms last year.

However, the business services firm warns that rising cost of energy is the biggest barrier to action on energy efficient measures.

Nine in ten firms expect energy price volatility to increase the price of their products and services over the next two years, this is an increase on the eight in ten who mentioned this the previous year.

Increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI), automation and electrification is the main driver of this increase in energy use, according to more than one in three firms.

For this study 750 UK firms were surveyed on their energy challenges and progress in energy efficiency.

Nine in ten said their energy use had risen over the last year, up by more than 10% among a fifth of respondents.

“A need to balance cost, carbon and energy resilience remained a familiar theme in the research, but this year’s findings showed businesses also faced the added complication of rising energy demand,” said PwC.

“Pursuing productivity gains and growth through expansion and the necessary adoption of energy-intensive technologies were two factors that look set to add a material increase in energy consumption.”

Another barrier to net zero ambition is high capital costs. PwC warns that “given the scale of investment required” and lack of government money to help “there is a funding gap between what is needed to drive energy efficient and what is currently being deployed”.

Vicky Parker, PwC UK’s industry leader for energy, utilities and resources, said: “The UK is facing the start of a new transition in the energy market, and we are at an inflection point, where tough decisions will need to be made.

“The adoption of technology combined with the electrification of businesses and the public sector are on course to increase electricity consumption after a long-term trend of decline.

“The result is that what was once seen as an energy trilemma – managing cost, carbon and security – now has an extra dimension: the need to supply enough stable power to unlock growth and productivity through technology-driven automation.

“There is a lot at stake for the UK to solve this challenge. We need to view clean power ambitions alongside the global competitiveness of the economy, whilst taking into account affordability and the overall pace of the change that is deliverable.”

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