Increasing IT costs for energy providers and a lack of resources to invest in innovative projects is a situation that many companies in this sector are all too familiar with. Regulatory requirements demand significant resources in a market that finds itself in a state of flux. Reducing margins are increasingly restricting the ability of many companies to implement expensive IT solutions. In this situation, the news that SAP can only guarantee standard maintenance for R/3 and their billing system IS-U until 2025 is yet another challenge. The working group for energy providers within the German-speaking SAP user group (DSAG) ensures that the concerns of this sector are addressed to SAP. This guideline is the result of collaboration between the authors, who have shared their experiences from their own projects, a great deal of discussions with colleagues, and some intensive dialog with SAP employees. It attempts to clearly present the facts required to make decisions and to deal with any open questions and topics that are currently being discussed in the market. This will help energy companies find a solution and will also benefit future dialog with SAP. Zum Download in englischer Sprache