Generator sets: rent or buy?

When you rent a film online, you can choose from a range of genres, pick the best option and, if you don’t enjoy it, there is little to lose. If you buy it instead, the film is yours to keep but you may regret your choice if it’s not what you were expecting. When deciding whether to buy or rent a generator set, there is a lot more at stake. Barry Hughes explains the considerations when choosing a genset package and how to get the best value from your investment

When bringing a genset onto your site, return on investment (ROI) is made up of several components; upfront cost, efficiency, operational costs and more. Whether you rent or buy is a complex equation including these factors, as well as less tangible ones like health and safety and risk.

If you have long-term power requirements, purchasing might seem like the obvious choice. 

However, if you have limited capital expenditure, it might be better to invest in revenue-generating activities like building your client base. Renting a genset can help you access vital prime or standby power without tying-up precious capital, meaning you can focus on growing your business.  

Project lifespan

Rental brings much more flexibility than purchasing — if your business has moved to a new factory or site you may need a temporary genset to provide electricity, but once you are connected to the National Grid the machine is no longer required for prime power. 

Purchasing one would leave you with a genset that has served its purpose, so selling it on is the only way of achieving a good ROI. By hanging onto the genset long after your project is complete, you risk it depreciating in value over time.  

When hiring a genset you will not any pay upfront costs, instead you pay a fixed fee that covers the whole rental period. You also don’t need to worry about the machine outstaying its welcome — a genset rental company can extend the hire if required, but if not will simply collect it once you are finished using it.

Maintenance and servicing 

If you buy a genset, you are responsible for arranging its servicing at regular intervals. Ownership also means paying first-line maintenance costs and ordering parts that have been approved by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM). 

The operational costs can begin to add up — a generator set can use around 300 litres of fuel an hour, so you may need to carry out daily refills. If the generator is embedded at your site, you might also need to install a separate electricity supply to keep it running, further increasing running costs.

When you rent a genset, you can leave the maintenance and fuel management to the provider. As well as leasing ancillary equipment like external fuel tanks, genset rental companies can manage any servicing during the asset’s lifecycle.

When a service is due, the company will notify you to agree a service window and its engineers will visit your site to carry out the necessary checks. Energyst regularly assesses all its equipment, using load banking, operational and electrical tests to ensure that the engine is healthy, and that all components function as intended.

Asset versatility 

Purchasing a genset can make it difficult to adapt to changing power requirements — once you have the machine, it will stay on your site even if it is unsuitable for future applications. For instance, construction sites have varied power requirements, depending on the size of the site, the number of employees and the amount of equipment that requires electricity. As projects progress, power requirements can change as new machines are introduced and the overall build strategy alters.

Rental agreements provide versatility and scalability throughout a project. If you rent a genset, you can easily replace the existing machine with a smaller or larger alternative. Some rental partners like Energyst also offer standdown rates if you want the generator to stay on site when it is not running, helping you avoid decommissioning costs during downtime.

Barry Hughes is Applications Manager at Energyst UK & Ireland.