The most important thing is to communicate with your client openly and transparently. There is often an inclination toward sustainable solutions, but clients usually resist due to cost concerns. To address this, we should explain the environmental and social impact of these solutions and emphasize their long-term benefits, particularly energy savings. Additionally, we should inform them about existing financing schemes that could fit their specific situation.

In our experience at Semco Infratech, addressing cost concerns often requires translating numbers into real-life impact. For instance, we worked with a mid-sized manufacturer hesitant about battery storage investments. By modeling their operational savings from peak load reductions and showing case studies of similar-sized firms, we demonstrated a 3-year payback period. What clinched the deal was offering a performance-based financing option tied to actual savings. This personalized approach not only eased upfront cost concerns but built trust, showcasing our commitment to their success.

One thing I have found helpful is to present the “full picture” to clients. The cost benefit of using sustainable solutions must be compared with the harmful environmental effects of the status quo - using fossil fuel sources of energy. Clients are more convinced to accept the initial huge sunk cost of switching to sustainable solutions when the benefit is communicated in tandem with the positive contribution to the environment.

Decouple cost and value. The lowest cost solution is rarely the best value, so shifting the mindset away from CAPEX to TCO (total cost of ownership) is an important first principle. TCO views lifetime cost (CAPEX, OPEX) as well as technical characteristics (RTE, availability, degradation) and allows a discussion on how better technical performance, lower risk or enabling higher return potential are valued. In this framing, a higher CAPEX can also be shown to drive the most value and lowest overall cost. For example, in a previous tech company we were able to demonstrate our product, as a result of a more robust safety features, had lower insurance premiums that more than offset the difference in capital cost of excluding them.

Sustainable energy solutions are long-term investments, in which the ROIs take longer to show than traditional methods. From ecological perspective, it slowly reduces pollutions to the environments. From economical perspective, sustainable energy is cheaper per unit. Like the 8MWh solar energy storage system installed in our factory, it saves more than $60k in electricity cost. From generational perspective, you could help saving the planet or leaving the messes to the next gen.