How Intelligent Energy Storage Helps Make Businesses Green
Issues surrounding relationships between climate change, clean energy, and Internet of Things (IoT) technology have become prominent in our developing cultural narrative. This is especially true regarding businesses and organizations.
In fact, 43 percent of Fortune 500 companies have set goals pertaining to greenhouse gas reduction, energy efficiency, and renewable energy, and this number is growing. These include industry leaders such as Caterpillar, Dow Chemical, General Electric, General Motors, Procter & Gamble, Sprint, and Walmart as well as Fortune 100 companies including Apple and Pepsi.
According to the World Wildlife Fund, emission-reducing projects by Fortune 500 companies resulted in nearly $3.7 billion in savings for them in 2016 alone. The annual emission reductions from these efforts are equivalent to taking 45 coal-fired power plants offline for one year. In addition, 53 Fortune 100 companies reported savings of $1.1 billion annually through energy efficiency and renewable energy. Those companies reduced emissions at the equivalent to taking 15 coal plants offline as well.
These projects contribute to the current trend in the U.S. of falling carbon dioxide emissions overall. In 2016, such emissions were down 1.7 percent compared to the previous year according to the Energy Information Administration.
Intelligent energy storage supports green business initiatives
Companies seeking greater social accountability and sustainable business practices see overlapping benefits with the implementation of intelligent energy storage solutions such as solar plus energy storage. This is in light of the fact that according to Navigant Research, the global market for solar plus storage will reach 27.4 GW and $49.1 billion by 2026.
As a result, many companies are utilizing intelligent energy storage to reduce emissions, increase energy efficiency, and enable renewable energy. That’s because it allows businesses to reduce their energy consumption and carbon footprint while saving money at the same time.
Some of the specific benefits to companies that implement intelligent energy storage solutions include:
Demand charge reduction – Intelligent energy storage reduces demand for energy from utilities, thus reducing the company’s carbon footprint and saving money on electricity. It also allows them to respond automatically to spikes in energy usage without increasing their electricity bill.
Onsite power generation – Companies can utilize intelligent energy storage to implement renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power. This offsets their energy demand and reduces their carbon footprint. In addition, since the energy is stored, they don’t need to rely on sunny or windy days to have power whenever they need it. Finally, they can sell unused power back to the grid, resulting in an even greater impact to their bottom line.
Improved backup control – Blackouts and other power shortage situations can threaten a company’s productivity. However, intelligent energy storage can detect shortages and implement stored power reserves automatically so that a company’s operations are uninterrupted.
Intelligent building management – Building automation systems (BAS) and building information management (BIM) increases facilities’ operational efficiency by automatically monitoring building systems. BAS and BIM are supported by intelligent energy storage which increases the efficiency by which buildings use, generate, and store energy.
Climate change and energy efficiency becoming prominent in company’s long term strategic visions for the future. By implementing intelligent energy storage solutions, businesses can benefit both by attaining sustainability goals and saving money at the same time.