ABSTRACT
In most energy efficiency initiatives, one is blessed with a number of energy-saving projects, all competing for a company's limited corporate resources. The various projects are typically interrelated; one of them, if implemented, would impact the others. They have a wide range of implementation costs and related energy-saving impacts—that is, they have different payback periods. If the quickest payback projects are done first, their savings will be unavailable to “subsidize” long payback projects. Thus, the long payback projects will have to fend for themselves in their fight for capital budget allocations. The end result may free up capital for other company projects in completely different areas.This is why low-cost/no-cost energy projects are so valuable: they not only save money in their own right, but also set up a level playing field for the ongoing prioritization of corporate resources generally.Fourteen low-cost/no-cost projects from actual field experience are described as examples of the kind of projects that can introduce big savings up front and, thus, change the business case for long payback projects subsequently considered.
