Countering rising energy costs in commercial real estate

Around 75% of European buildings perform poorly on energy efficiency. At the same time, tenants are putting more pressure on property owners to make buildings sustainable and affordable to operate. Add the rising and unpredictable energy prices of recent years, and the challenge is clear.

The good news? There are plenty of ways to regain control. Smart interventions not only reduce costs, but also improve building performance and strengthen tenant satisfaction.

Short on time? Here are the key takeaways:

• Get more out of your existing BMS: Optimize your current building management systems through monitoring, automation, and smart adjustments.
• Use data and technology to your advantage: Combine real-time energy monitoring, indoor climate data, and benchmarks to identify waste and make informed improvements.‍
• Engage tenants in energy efficiency: Transparency and clear agreements create long-term savings and stronger tenant relationships.

Want to see how all of this comes together in practice? In this blog, we’ll walk through these strategies to reduce your energy costs and practical ways to implement these across your property portfolio.

Why energy efficiency matters, financially and sustainably

Energy efficiency is not just a box-ticking exercise for ESG reports, it’s a strategic move. Smarter energy use lowers operating costs, increases the value of your properties, and makes your portfolio future-ready.

• Lower operational costs: Smarter energy management reduces bills, maintenance, and breakdowns. Optimization platforms make waste visible and highlight where small changes deliver big savings.
• Stronger ESG position: Data-driven strategies help you cut CO₂ emissions and comply with stricter European ESG requirements.
• Higher asset value: Energy-efficient buildings attract tenants and investors. Retrofitting from EPC label G to B can already deliver an internal rate of return (IRR) of 10%.
• Happier tenants: A healthy, stable indoor climate improves comfort and productivity. Involving tenants in sustainability goals strengthens relationships and encourages longer leases.

3 strategies (and 11 practical applications) to reduce energy costs

Energy costs put heavy pressure on margins, but the right choices can quickly improve both performance and financial results. Here are three proven strategies and practical ways to implement them.

1. Get more out of your BMS with software-first optimization

Before committing to major investments, explore what your existing building systems can do. In many cases, there is significant potential waiting to be unlocked. By fine-tuning and continuously monitoring your building management system (BMS), you can reduce energy use without immediate CapEx.

Practical applications include:

• Adjusted setpoints and time schedules: Consider (automatically) adjusting clock times, seasonal profiles, and holidays to avoid unnecessary nighttime or weekend consumption.
• Occupancy-based heating and ventilation: Let systems be guided by actual usage patterns instead of fixed schedules.
• Demand-based lighting: So lighting reacts to daylight and presence.

Automated fault detection (FDD): To spot deviations in valves, sensors, and control loops early.

2. Use data and smart technology

You can’t improve what you can’t measure. Reliable data is essential to understand where energy is wasted and which measures deliver real impact. Smart technology makes it easier to base decisions on facts rather than assumptions.

Practical applications include:

• AI-powered optimization: Algorithms analyze occupancy, outside temperatures, and system performance to recommend targeted actions.
• Automated HVAC and lighting controls: Systems adjust automatically to usage, preventing waste and reducing wear.
• Energy benchmarking: Compare buildings within your portfolio or against standards such as BREEAM and WELL to prioritize improvements.
• IoT and smart sensors: Track temperature, air quality, and humidity to detect inefficiencies before they escalate.

This way you can make decisions based on facts rather than assumptions. You can identify where improvements are needed more quickly and implement measures in a targeted and phased way. 

Another option is to have these measures implemented for you through a service-oriented partner, such as Healthy Workers. This way you combine lower operational costs with better building performance and a stronger sustainability profile. 

That is exactly why VORM chose Healthy Workers’ building optimization platform. And with results. Within 24 months, VORM reduced the energy consumption of four buildings by 23%. The company is now on track to achieve an A label for its entire real estate portfolio within 5 to 6 years.

3. Actively involve tenants in energy efficiency

Even the most advanced building won’t achieve efficiency gains without tenant involvement. Tenants shape actual usage patterns, so creating awareness and making clear agreements is essential.

Practical applications include:

• Raising awareness: Through dashboards, notifications, or communication campaigns that show the impact of tenant behavior.
• Smart agreements: To define rules for lighting, temperature, and ventilation, supported by automatic settings that make compliance easy.
• Regular maintenance: Well-maintained systems reduce energy waste and improve comfort.

Perform regular maintenance: Regular maintenance is essential, but in practice it’s often insufficient. Independent data-driven checks ensure that installations keep running efficiently and tenants don’t experience unnecessary discomfort.

Subsidies available for energy efficiency improvements

Government incentives and tax benefits can significantly reduce the upfront costs of energy efficiency upgrades. PwC highlights programs such as the EIA (Energy Investment Allowance), which allows you to deduct up to 45.5% of your investment costs in sustainable technologies from your taxable profit. Taking advantage of these types of schemes can accelerate your ROI and make long-term energy savings more accessible. 

Still, many organizations struggle to access these benefits because finding the right scheme, at the right time, is easier said than done. That’s why it pays to work with partners who understand both the energy landscape and the subsidy framework. It’s not just about knowing what’s available, but about knowing how to use it effectively.

At Healthy Workers, we’ve experienced this firsthand. We received a significant sustainability subsidy ourselves, which proves that there is sustainability funding available once you know how to access it. Now, we often help our clients identify and secure subsidies and other funding that helps them to increase the energy efficiency of their buildings. 

Why taking proactive measures will mitigate rising energy costs 

At the moment, energy prices aren’t just rising, they’re also becoming less predictable. This volatility leaves you exposed to sudden energy cost spikes that can quickly increase your costs and erode margins. 

That’s why you need to ensure your buildings are energy efficient and you’re optimizing energy use across your portfolio. Every month of inaction can result in higher energy bills, more energy waste, and missed opportunities to optimize your buildings for both energy efficiency and tenant comfort.

Next to the financial implications of rising energy costs, there’s also growing regulatory pressure to reduce energy waste, from stricter EPC requirements to ESG reporting obligations. As the market changes, buildings that don’t meet modern energy efficiency standards will become harder to lease or sell, and become too expensive to operate. The good news? You don’t have to figure out how to cut energy costs and reduce energy usage alone, we’re here to help. 

Partner with Healthy Workers to reduce your energy costs and optimize building performance

Your building is full of hidden opportunities, you just need to know where to look. By combining real-time building data with hands-on support, we help you identify ways to increase the energy efficiency of your buildings and reduce energy costs, without compromising tenant comfort. 

Here’s what partnering with Healthy Workers looks like:

• Real-time insights: see where energy is wasted and where savings are hiding.
• Predictive maintenance: prevent breakdowns of HVAC and other systems before they happen.
• Smart automation tools: automate control of lighting, HVAC, and other systems to optimize indoor climates without wasting energy. 
• Portfolio-wide benchmarking: compare your buildings’ performances so you can prioritize high ROI investments. 
• Expert consulting: make better investment decisions, easily comply with ESG goals, and prepare for future regulations.

Whether you manage a single building or an entire portfolio, Healthy Workers gives you the visibility, tools, and guidance to stay ahead in the highly competitive real estate market. Book a free demo with our building optimization experts to learn how we can help you improve your buildings’ performance and reduce your energy costs.