Small business owners’ most cost-effective way to cut energy costs is by making their buildings more energy efficient.

I am a good example.

I have used the lighting efficiency program of Dominion Energy twice in my office building.

The financial incentives made the improvements both in energy efficiency and better lighting a great business deal.

Plus, they hire the contractors to do all the work.

Dominion’s small business and nonprofit customers are now eligible for thousands of dollars in incentives when making energy efficiency improvements to their existing heating and cooling systems in the company’s Small Business Energy Solutions Program.

Financial incentives cover 90% – up to $6,000 – of the cost for energy efficiency improvements to most HVAC, lighting and refrigeration projects with a potentially fast return on investment.

Since 2014, the program has offered tailored recommendations to help meet the energy-saving needs of each participant. The program includes incentives for advanced heating and cooling system tune-ups, smart thermostats, duct sealing and HVAC controls.

Program benefits include:

• Free on-site energy analysis of lighting, refrigeration and HVAC systems

• Simple, cost-effective options and easy-to-follow recommendations to help manage lighting, refrigeration or HVAC expenses.

Local, pre-qualified contractors to perform the work at your convenience and removal and environmentally friendly disposal of old fluorescent lamps and ballasts.

The Small Business Energy Solutions Program is available to Dominion Energy South Carolina’s small business and small, nonprofit customers with five or fewer electric service accounts and an annual energy use of 350,000 kilowatt hours or less.

For information on how to participate, eligibility, and terms and conditions, email SCEnergyExperts@DominionEnergySC.com, call 877-784-7234 or visit DominionEnergySC.com/small