Energy management; manage costs and usage

Discover how a systematic approach to energy management can help you gain usage insights, reduce peak demand, and deliver energy savings.

Published: November 11, 2021

Energy management is not a new concept, but there is a new sense of urgency surrounding it. Technological advancements have enabled operations of all sizes to access and benefit from sophisticated systems that are more capable, more affordable, and easier to use.


There is also a greater business need for energy management - and it is no longer viewed entirely through the lens of cost. In fact, 88% of leaders say they now see energy procurement as an opportunity to create value.1


They can do this by:

  • Managing costs - providing greater control and visibility of energy usage through revealing inefficiencies while, helping to keep capacity and demand charges down.

  • Promoting resiliency and reducing operational risks - facilitating decreased reliance on the grid, especially during peak demand periods or trigger events.

  • Lowering usage- helping to minimize overall consumption, enabling usage at times when the grid is less carbon-intensive, and integrating with on-site solar generation and storage.

But how can commercial and industrial businesses achieve this?
How energy management systems can future-proof businesses

In the past, commercial and industrial energy management relied on manual efforts, such as periodic facility-wide audits, that were difficult to systemize. But, with recent advancements, it is possible to achieve a much more integrated approach.


One way to understand this distinction is to think of energy management not as a loosely defined goal, but in terms of energy management systems (EMS). There are three elements to this:


  1. Core Components & Functionality
    An EMS uses a blend of hardware, software, and managed services - adding a layer of automation and immediate response capabilities to help generate detailed energy usage data. This gives your business real-time insights into problems and inefficiencies while providing long-term and itemized energy consumption information. The data can also be used to train machine learning algorithms for predictive analytics.

  2. Integrations with Energy Efficient Infrastructure
    Once you have energy efficiency infrastructure like lighting or refrigeration systems in place, an EMS allows you to optimize the energy savings it can deliver. It does this by managing your peak demand - leading to significantly lower demand charges, which can make up 50% of your energy bill.2

  3. Integrations with Onsite Generation & Storage
    With an EMS managing and minimizing the amount of energy pulled from the grid and delivered to the meter, onsite generation and storage technology naturally supports a facility’s ability to power itself. Whether through on-site solar panels or behind-the-meter energy storage, an EMS helps to harness your power more effectively.

The results - deliver savings and reduce usage

An energy management system provides immediate cost and energy savings benefits. By providing the technical foundation to underpin end-to-end decarbonization goals, energy management systems can also help you meet your wider targets, including:


  • Demonstrating sustainability credentials to investors, stakeholders, and consumers.

  • Meeting voluntary or regulatory emissions-reduction goals.

  • Providing the foundational infrastructure to support optimized electric vehicle (EV) adoption and fleet charging.


For example, one of Shell’s retail clients wanted to reduce its energy spend and gain insights into its energy usage. By deploying an energy management solution, the company was able to save $9,200 per year on utility bills and maintenance.

How Shell Energy can help

Energy management services from Shell Energy provide new or existing facilities with tailored hardware, software and support to meet scalable savings and sustainability goals.


  • We collaborate with our on-site partners to design and deploy user-friendly energy management systems that pay for themselves in savings.

  • Flexible financing options also allow you to realize immediate reductions in energy bills and operations expenses, without the need for upfront capital investment.

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