Businesses and offices should be aware that energy efficient measures are an investment and cutting costs in those areas will not pay off in the long run, an expert in the field has said.

Dr Paula Owen, who is the director of a consultancy firm who specialise in energy and its usage, warned that economic pressure shouldn’t halt the drive towards energy efficient offices.

She noted that environment saving devices are often seen as an extra as opposed to an essential and are therefore on the list of expendable costs.

Such short-sightedness means that the long term effects of the upfront cost of energy efficient appliances are not felt, despite the huge benefits they can bring.

With energy prices having risen recently and looking likely to continue to do so well into the future, the best way to counteract them is to cut down on the amount of gas and electricity in the first place.

Dr Owen said: “I would recommend to [businesses] not to cut this type of initiative, because it will save them money year on year.”

Small businesses should look towards government initiatives to help them become more energy efficient, though Dr Owen laments the fact they can no longer take advantage of the feed-in tariff scheme for solar panels.

Solar panels are a great way to utilise a resource that every office has – a roof – to generate energy for itself.

Now that subsidies for the feed-in tariffs have been cut they are less financially viable for many businesses, who may wish to look into the renewable heat incentive instead.

Dr Owen said: “Don’t abandon efficiency measures and environmental initiatives because they will pay dividends in the end. People are cutting costs where they can, but it is actually a false economy to cut costs in the area of energy efficiency and environmental improvements.”