As a long-time recovering consultant and someone who’s spent most of his career helping organizations move faster under pressure and in constrained budgets, I’ve seen what happens when teams get caught flat-footed. In energy, especially solar, that moment has been coming since November 5, 2024 with the new administration coming in.

I’m sure many of you in the industry have been tracking the latest developments of the Senate’s latest tax bill draft, and I feel your pain and stress. But just in case, here’s the TL;DR: it proposes a significant shift in tax credits in renewable energy—one that could stifle many in our industry, and one that leaders across industry organizations like SEIA have called, “another bad bill that will significantly harm the U.S. solar and storage industry".

Recently, a Program Manager at a large O&M service provider put it plainly: owners used to have a little bit of a buffer in their models—even underperforming sites had the 30% tax credit cushion. Without it, clients are laser-focusing on every lost kilowatt-hour. The landscape is changing, and it’s important to be ready now. 

That shift isn’t just financial—it’s psychological. Commercial clients, especially those who don’t eat, sleep, and breathe solar, need confidence. And they’re turning to their O&M partners to give it to them.

If you lead an O&M organization, the pressure’s rising. And the ones who adapt quickly—who build smarter operations now—are the ones who will not only survive this shake-up, but use it to grow.

Resilience Is Built On 3 Moves O&M Leaders Are Making Now

1. They’re Building Decision Agility

The difference between a profitable site and a problem child? Often, it’s not the site—it’s how fast you understand what’s happening.

But too often, that understanding is buried in spreadsheets, emails, the DAS, the work order history… oof! It’s all split between different systems and tools. 

In a recent conversation, an asset manager overseeing more than 500 MW across 100+ sites shared how difficult it was to manage their portfolio with all of the systems they’ve got in place–plus all the different offtake structures and agreements they’re juggling. 

The smartest teams are shifting to data environments that consolidate alerts, work orders, production data, and historical maintenance all in one place. Because agility isn’t just about speed—it’s about clarity. When you can see what matters (and what doesn’t), you act faster, allocate smarter, and avoid waste. You drive productivity. You drive returns.

2. They’re Turning O&M Into a Revenue Anchor

Reading the tea leaves: solar margins will get tighter (as if they aren’t already). Between interconnection delays, labor shortages, and softening policy support, new projects may slow growth while funds not strategically aligned with renewables will shift their investments elsewhere. 

We’ll continue seeing growth because the fundamentals of solar make sense, and given the energy demands, solar is also the fastest to deploy. Couple that with storage, and you have a winning combo… on top of other hybrid models. 

We’re seeing more IPPs, asset owners, and commercial off-takers prioritize long-term system performance. They’re asking sharper questions. And they’re demanding more from their O&M partners.

That’s a good thing. Because done right, O&M doesn’t just preserve asset value—it amplifies it. It’s no wonder some of the leading EPCs have added O&M services to help build sustainable, recurring revenue. By ensuring systems produce at or above expectations, you don’t just fulfill a contract—you create a predictable revenue stream that stabilizes the portfolio, even when new development cools. 

3. They’re Letting Data Drive—at Scale

Let’s not confuse “data” with “dashboards.” Every team has metrics. Few have insights. Even fewer can act on them.

According to a National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) benchmarking study, commercial PV systems managed with strong O&M practices—enabled by consistent data review and intelligent alert handling—showed performance ratios up to 95%, compared to a baseline of ~91.7% for systems with minimal oversight.

Let that sink in. That’s a 3-4% net gain in usable energy output, just by enabling teams to act on the right data.

And it doesn’t stop there. McKinsey found that digital initiatives in energy have delivered 2–10% production gains and 10–30% reductions in operating costs when data aggregation and intelligence tools are deployed effectively.

These aren’t speculative numbers—they’re proof that smart O&M pays. And it’s an opportunity O&Ms can grasp today and not leaving opportunity on the table for competitors. 

The companies getting these results didn’t just “have data.” They used it to build confidence, move faster, and keep performance high across increasingly complex fleets. 

Then, extrapolate this further when confidence between owner and O&M provider is continually earned and built–you have a recipe for growth in continued partnership, expansion opportunities, and the coveted growth of all–referrals. 

In-House or Partner? What It Takes to Get There

Some organizations will try to build this intelligence layer in-house. That can work—if you’ve got 12-18 months, a bench of engineers, and the budget to match. I’ve worked with some of the largest, smartest teams in Fortune 500 organizations in asset-intensive industries outside of solar / renewables, and they all have teams. It makes sense if you have the funds and time to do so to give it a try, especially, if no solution exists, yet, or it’s going to be core to the business. 

But for most teams, waiting 12-18 months or hundreds of thousands of budget isn’t an option. They can’t wait to build real intelligence into their organizations as new legislation and industry shifts are within months if not weeks. They need visibility now. They need insights now that help inform how teams prioritize and improve their workflows. They need confidence they can pass on to their clients—now.

That’s where we come in.

At LCOE.ai, we’re helping O&M teams build that agility with rapid onboarding and data consolidation. Whether it’s:

• Prioritizing alerts and customer portfolios across multiple systems

• Benchmarking performance against budgeted models or site-specific expectations

• Or simplifying the reporting mess with more seamless, universal customer reports

We’re not here to replace your tools. We’re here to stitch them together, provide the intelligence on top, and save your team hours—if not days—every week. These are prime hours that can be shifted towards revenue-generating, customer-facing work to the bottom line.

Final Thought: Prepare for Uncertainty, Win in Opportunity

Yes, the Senate bill is still a draft. Yes, much can change if their goal is to send for the White House’s signature in 2.5 weeks.

But the best leaders aren’t waiting for Congress to decide their future.

They’re acting on what they can control—tightening operations, improving visibility, and preparing their teams to adapt. Oh, and calling their Senators to voice their support for the energy credits. Because whether the market gets tougher or turns in our favor (one can dream!), the teams that are ready will not only survive but thrive in any case.

If you're feeling this pain and are looking to get ahead of the coming challenges, let’s talk. We’re in this together. We believe in the importance of renewable energy for American energy independence, innovation, and lower energy prices. And we believe the fundamentals of clean energy are still strong.