Electric motors consume 30-80% of total industrial energy around the world. This study estimates the economic viability of replacing rewound and standard motors with high efficiency motors (HEMs) in the industrial sector. The efficiency of a motor is degraded when it is rewound and it is better to rewind a larger motor compared with a smaller motor. It was found that a HEM can save on average 5.5% of energy compared with a standard motor. In addition, the payback period was found to be reasonable when a motor is operated at a 50% load. HEMs will also save a sizeable amount of energy and reduce emissions. It was estimated that 67,868 MWh/year energy and US$ 4,343,531 per year could be saved by introducing HEMs. By contrast, 44,582 tons of CO2, 333 tons of SO2 and 122 tons of NOx emissions could be reduced through the aforementioned energy savings. This study found that rewound motors of a larger size and HEMs are economically viable. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.