Building owners are embracing energy efficiency to reduce energy and operational costs, according to a commentary from the law firm of Sullivan & Worcester, LLP posted at Lexology.
The writers cited a survey and analysis by Deloitte that found that 79 percent of building managers see reducing electricity costs as a key to “maintaining a competitive advantage.” More than half of respondents cited cost cutting as a motivation and more than half of the businesses that responded generate electricity on site.
The numbers look good to these companies, according to the writers. For instance, an LED lighting project can have an ROI of only two years. The overall impact of efficiency can be great for the bottom line: Reducing energy use by 20 percent can save $40 billion nationally in the commercial segment. That would be matched by an equal amount of savings on the consumer side.
Serious questions and decisions must be made, however, on how to finance the projects that will lead to these savings, the authors write. Case studies are one way in which building owners can get up to speed. Last month, the Institute for Market Transformation released a series of case studies that included a look at how a $1 billion project five years ago resulted in annual savings of 38 percent -- $4.4 billion – at the Empire State Building in New York City.
