Choose a provider that has renewable energy clients and can connect remote sites as well as offices. It should hold recognised security certifications such as Cyber Essentials Plus and ISO 27001, manage IT, connectivity and mobiles together, publish its response times, and be clear about where its responsibility ends and your equipment provider's begins. Compare value and outcomes, not just the monthly price.
Seven things to look for
1. Renewables experience
Remote sites, field engineers, project-based growth and supply chain requirements are problems office-only providers rarely see. Ask how many renewables clients they support and what kind.
2. Remote site connectivity
Can they check coverage at your sites, supply 4G, 5G and satellite, set up automatic failover to a backup connection and monitor it? Ask how quickly they can connect a new site.
3. Security they practise themselves
Ask whether they hold Cyber Essentials Plus and ISO 27001, and whether they can take you through Cyber Essentials. A provider that can't pass the audits itself will struggle to get you through them.
4. A clear boundary with site systems
A good provider tells you plainly what they will and won't manage. Be wary of anyone who offers to take over inverter, battery or grid control systems without the specialist expertise and agreement of the equipment provider.
5. IT, connectivity and mobiles together
Separate suppliers for IT, broadband, site routers and mobiles mean nobody owns a fault at a remote site. One provider covering them, with real expertise in each, simplifies support.
6. Published response times
Ask for their average first response and their resolution figures, and how they measure satisfaction.
7. Room to grow
They should be able to onboard new starters and sites quickly and plan around your project pipeline.
Ten questions to ask
- How many renewable energy businesses do you support?
- How do you connect a site with poor mobile coverage?
- How quickly can you get a new site online?
- Do you hold Cyber Essentials Plus and ISO 27001?
- Can you take us through Cyber Essentials?
- What will you manage, and what won't you, at our sites?
- How do you manage field devices and lost phones?
- What's your average first response time?
- Can you manage our mobiles, connectivity and phones too?
- How often will you review our roadmap against our project pipeline?
Signs you've outgrown your current provider
- Each new site is a scramble
- They can't help when a developer asks for Cyber Essentials
- Field devices aren't managed
- You chase them for ticket updates
- Suppliers blame each other when a site goes offline
- There's no roadmap
Frequently asked questions
Should a renewables business use a specialist or a general IT provider?
A general provider with real renewables clients is usually the best fit. Most of what a solar or battery storage business needs is business IT, but remote site connectivity, field devices and supply chain security need experience a purely office-based provider may not have. Ask for the number and type of renewables clients.
What response time should we expect from an IT provider?
Ask for the average first response and how it's measured. A good managed IT provider should respond to most tickets within an hour and publish its actual figures. Check resolution times too, and whether support covers the hours your field teams work.
How Indigo does this. Here are our answers. Indigo Unified Communications supports more than 10 renewable energy businesses. Every ticket gets a first response in under 30 minutes: in September 2026 we handled 1,854 tickets, with a 13-minute average first response and 65% resolved within 2 hours. We hold Cyber Essentials Plus, ISO 27001:2022 and ISO 9001:2015, keep 95% of our clients and score 4.98/5 from post-ticket surveys. We manage IT, connectivity and mobiles from one Glasgow team, and we don't manage SCADA (the control systems that run site equipment). See IT support for renewable energy.
Sources: DSIT, Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025/2026, 30 April 2026, https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/cyber-security-breaches-survey-20252026/cyber-security-breaches-survey-20252026 · Indigo service desk data, September 2026.
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