Alternative energy solutions — on-site solar generation, battery storage, fuel cells, and microgrid architectures — reduce grid electricity costs, improve energy resilience, and support the ESG commitments that stakeholders, regulators, and customers increasingly require. The right alternative energy strategy depends on facility characteristics, utility rate structure, and the specific resilience or sustainability objectives driving the investment.
Alternative energy economics are driven by local electricity rates, available incentives, facility load profiles, and grid interconnection requirements — variables that differ significantly by site and utility territory. RLM advises on alternative energy strategy, technology selection, developer evaluation, and the financial modeling that determines when alternative energy investments deliver acceptable returns.
A structured advisory process — from use case definition and platform evaluation to deployment architecture and ongoing optimization.
We assess the alternative energy opportunity at each facility — solar resource availability, roof and land area, electrical load profile, utility interconnection requirements, and the rate structure characteristics that determine project economics.
We evaluate alternative energy technologies — rooftop solar PV, carport solar, battery energy storage systems (BESS), fuel cells, and microgrid architectures — matching technology to your resiliency requirements, available incentives, and financial return expectations.
We evaluate energy project developers and EPC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction) contractors — assessing technical capabilities, financial stability, project references, and the contract structures (PPA, lease, direct ownership) that determine project risk allocation.
We model alternative energy project economics — NPV, IRR, payback period across ownership models — incorporating ITC/IRA tax credits, state incentives, utility bill savings, and the demand response revenue that improves project returns.
The dimensions that determine whether an IoT deployment delivers lasting operational value — and the questions RLM helps you answer before any commitment.
Direct ownership maximizes long-term savings but requires capital investment and asset management. Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) require no capital but contractually obligate energy purchases for 20+ years. Evaluate trade-offs carefully — PPA terms that seem attractive today may not reflect future electricity rates.
Utility interconnection approval for on-site generation can take 6-18 months. Evaluate interconnection timelines early in project planning — interconnection delays are the most common cause of alternative energy project schedule overruns.
The Inflation Reduction Act created significant tax credit opportunities for alternative energy investments, but eligibility, domestic content requirements, and transferability rules are complex. Evaluate IRA implications with qualified tax counsel before finalizing project economics.
Battery storage that provides resilience value (backup power during outages) has different sizing and dispatch logic than storage optimized for demand charge reduction. Evaluate whether the project is primarily an economics play or a resilience investment — or both — before finalizing the design.
Alternative energy investments on leased facilities require landlord cooperation and lease term alignment. Evaluate lease term remaining vs. project payback period and the contractual provisions needed to protect the energy investment if the lease changes.
"RLM helped us select and deploy an IoT platform across 28 facilities in under six months. Their vendor-neutral approach saved us from a costly mistake with our initial shortlist."
"We needed smart metering and energy management across our campus portfolio. RLM mapped the vendor landscape, ran the evaluation, and we're now hitting our ESG targets ahead of schedule."
Talk to an RLM advisor who specializes in enterprise IoT deployments. Independent guidance from platform selection through operational deployment.