The Climate Has Changed

The report finds that companies in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) achieve a high average internal rate of return (IRR) of 17% on low-carbon investments, significantly outperforming European companies. Energy efficiency measures are the primary driver of emissions reductions, delivering an average IRR of 16.7%. The document also highlights that LAC companies are setting emissions targets that are, on average, 14% more ambitious than science-based recommendations. It argues that this strong business case should encourage regional governments, particularly Peru, to push for more ambitious international climate agreements.

• Companies in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) achieve an average annual internal rate of return (IRR) of 17% on low-carbon investments, which is higher than the average of 1% in Europe and 11% in India, though lower than the 20% in the US.
• Energy efficiency measures account for nearly 90% of carbon emissions reductions in the studied projects and provide an average IRR of 16.7%.
• Investments in low-carbon energy projects, such as wind and solar, yield an average IRR of 13.4%.
• LAC companies achieve approximately double the emissions savings per dollar invested compared to companies in the US, with levels similar to those in India and South Africa.
• Companies in the LAC region that have set emissions reduction targets are averaging cuts 14% deeper than science-based recommendations, with the top ten companies exceeding those targets by approximately 25%.
• Between 2006 and 2013, the LAC region attracted $132 billion in cumulative investment for wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, biofuels, and small hydro projects (up to 50MW).
• Approximately 54% of power demand in Latin America is currently met by renewable energy sources, including large hydro; however, this figure drops to 6% when large hydro is excluded.

APA

We Mean Business Coalition (n.d.). The Climate Has Changed. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/The-Climate-Has-Changed_LAC.pdf

Chicago

We Mean Business Coalition. The Climate Has Changed. n.d. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/The-Climate-Has-Changed_LAC.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=We Mean Business Coalition |title=The Climate Has Changed |url=https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/The-Climate-Has-Changed_LAC.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wemeanbusinesscoalitionndclimate, author = {{We Mean Business Coalition}}, title = {{The Climate Has Changed}}, institution = {We Mean Business Coalition}, url = {https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/The-Climate-Has-Changed_LAC.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }