Decarbonising Industries: The Power of Outsourcing Utilities
This World Environment Day is yet another reminder for industries to pledge to become an active part in this global effort to achieve net zero goals and create an ecosystem that supports businesses, people, and the planet.
June 05, 2025. By News Bureau

The realities of climate change demand actions from every possible stakeholder. Decarbonisation has become a necessity. For heavy emitters like manufacturing, chemicals, mining, and logistics the path to net zero is both a strategic necessity and a monumental challenge. While the ambition is commendable, execution remains a bottleneck, often due to legacy infrastructure, capital constraints, technical expertise, and operational complexity. One powerful and often underutilised lever is outsourcing utilities to specialised green energy providers.
India's industrial sector emits about 25 percent of the national greenhouse gas. India is responsible for more than 7 percent of global GHG emissions, making it the world's third-largest emitter of atmospheric pollution. Reducing emissions is critical for India to achieve its net zero targets set for 2030. Fuelled to becoming one of the largest economies in the world, we have a task at hand to find the right balance between meeting our decarbonisation goals and achieving optimal output from our industries.
Setting individual targets to decarbonise and meet regulatory requirements, industries across have adopted ways to manage energy demands inhouse, building and maintaining their own heating, cooling, power generation, and effluent and emission treatment infrastructure. But these systems are often outdated, inefficient, and powered by fossil fuels. Setting up utilities that meet industrial demands for energy targets requires high investments and technical expertise. Transitioning to greener solutions like biomass, renewable electricity, green hydrogen, or carbon capture technologies involves complex planning, compliance, and high upfront capital costs. This is where outsourcing is a game-changer, that becomes not just practical, but strategic to achieve the long-term goal of achieving a net zero carbon emissions.
Outsourcing transfers the burden and responsibility of managing the utilities which allows industries to focus on their core operations and production processes while outsourcing partners work with the right technology and people. The outsourcing model for energy services has been success across industries ensuring carbon reduction and cleaner energy utilisation.
Partnering with an outsourcing service provider to manage utilities promotes and accelerates efforts for decarbonisation as the partner is aligned and accountable to achieve reduction in emissions, reduction in shutdown time, increasing uptime and optimised production output, and achieving cost optimisation. They are motivated and driven to continuously monitor the utilities engaged with and innovate to ensure the best possible outcomes. Green utilities providers today are integrating AI, ML and innovative technology solutions that analyse and create optimum energy usage patterns for industries, integrate alternate fuel usage such as biofuels and waste-to-energy solutions. These solutions support in moving industries a step forward towards achieving their sustainability goals.
One of the most effective models gaining traction is the Build-Own-Operate (BOO) model. Under this approach utilities such as steam, heat, chilled water, treated water, power and solar are managed throughout the product life cycle. With this model, industrial customers are able to pay as per off take while receiving the best-in-class utility services, ensuring compliance to regulatory requirements, and the complete management of O&M.
Despite the convincing benefits, barriers to adoption remain. Decision-makers often fear high-upfront costs, risk of operational disruption and lack of a skilled workforce or are unfamiliar with the outsourcing model given their working with traditional inhouse built solutions for utilities. However, today use of technology has enabled data sharing in real time which highlights to customers the operations of the utilities engaged and the impact from integration of green solutions that are in line with regulatory compliance. In a resource-constrained world, shared infrastructure through outsourcing represents the smartest use of capital and expertise.
We are in an era where environmental stewardship and industrial competitiveness are no longer at odds. They are increasingly interdependent. Shareholders, customers, and regulators are all demanding action, and industries that fail to adapt are at risk. Outsourcing utilities is not just a business decision it’s a strategic move that can design and transform the industry’s carbon trajectory. It allows businesses to shift from reactive, piecemeal sustainability efforts to a proactive, scalable energy transition strategy. It transforms utilities from a cost center into a lever for innovation and leadership.
This World Environment Day is yet another reminder for industries to pledge to become an active part in this global effort to achieve net zero goals and create an ecosystem that supports businesses, people, and the planet. Industrial decarbonisation cannot be achieved in silos. It requires bold partnerships, shared accountability, and long-term thinking.
Let’s shift the narrative from reactive compliance to proactive climate leadership. You don’t have to do it alone, partner with the utility’s expert, and lead your business and the planet towards greener and more sustainable future.
India's industrial sector emits about 25 percent of the national greenhouse gas. India is responsible for more than 7 percent of global GHG emissions, making it the world's third-largest emitter of atmospheric pollution. Reducing emissions is critical for India to achieve its net zero targets set for 2030. Fuelled to becoming one of the largest economies in the world, we have a task at hand to find the right balance between meeting our decarbonisation goals and achieving optimal output from our industries.
Setting individual targets to decarbonise and meet regulatory requirements, industries across have adopted ways to manage energy demands inhouse, building and maintaining their own heating, cooling, power generation, and effluent and emission treatment infrastructure. But these systems are often outdated, inefficient, and powered by fossil fuels. Setting up utilities that meet industrial demands for energy targets requires high investments and technical expertise. Transitioning to greener solutions like biomass, renewable electricity, green hydrogen, or carbon capture technologies involves complex planning, compliance, and high upfront capital costs. This is where outsourcing is a game-changer, that becomes not just practical, but strategic to achieve the long-term goal of achieving a net zero carbon emissions.
Outsourcing transfers the burden and responsibility of managing the utilities which allows industries to focus on their core operations and production processes while outsourcing partners work with the right technology and people. The outsourcing model for energy services has been success across industries ensuring carbon reduction and cleaner energy utilisation.
Partnering with an outsourcing service provider to manage utilities promotes and accelerates efforts for decarbonisation as the partner is aligned and accountable to achieve reduction in emissions, reduction in shutdown time, increasing uptime and optimised production output, and achieving cost optimisation. They are motivated and driven to continuously monitor the utilities engaged with and innovate to ensure the best possible outcomes. Green utilities providers today are integrating AI, ML and innovative technology solutions that analyse and create optimum energy usage patterns for industries, integrate alternate fuel usage such as biofuels and waste-to-energy solutions. These solutions support in moving industries a step forward towards achieving their sustainability goals.
One of the most effective models gaining traction is the Build-Own-Operate (BOO) model. Under this approach utilities such as steam, heat, chilled water, treated water, power and solar are managed throughout the product life cycle. With this model, industrial customers are able to pay as per off take while receiving the best-in-class utility services, ensuring compliance to regulatory requirements, and the complete management of O&M.
Despite the convincing benefits, barriers to adoption remain. Decision-makers often fear high-upfront costs, risk of operational disruption and lack of a skilled workforce or are unfamiliar with the outsourcing model given their working with traditional inhouse built solutions for utilities. However, today use of technology has enabled data sharing in real time which highlights to customers the operations of the utilities engaged and the impact from integration of green solutions that are in line with regulatory compliance. In a resource-constrained world, shared infrastructure through outsourcing represents the smartest use of capital and expertise.
We are in an era where environmental stewardship and industrial competitiveness are no longer at odds. They are increasingly interdependent. Shareholders, customers, and regulators are all demanding action, and industries that fail to adapt are at risk. Outsourcing utilities is not just a business decision it’s a strategic move that can design and transform the industry’s carbon trajectory. It allows businesses to shift from reactive, piecemeal sustainability efforts to a proactive, scalable energy transition strategy. It transforms utilities from a cost center into a lever for innovation and leadership.
This World Environment Day is yet another reminder for industries to pledge to become an active part in this global effort to achieve net zero goals and create an ecosystem that supports businesses, people, and the planet. Industrial decarbonisation cannot be achieved in silos. It requires bold partnerships, shared accountability, and long-term thinking.
Let’s shift the narrative from reactive compliance to proactive climate leadership. You don’t have to do it alone, partner with the utility’s expert, and lead your business and the planet towards greener and more sustainable future.
- Khushboo Bhatia, CEO, Thermax Onsite Energy Solutions Limited (TOESL)
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