What clean energy startups are doing to ensure every home, business and farm in Indian villages is electrified
17 Dec 2018 11:31 AM GMT
As of April 28, 2018, India?s villages were said to be 100-percent electrified. But what does that really mean? Some startups have taken on the mandate to make it a ground reality through their clean ...
- While the scheme mandates electrification of at least 10 percent of the households in a village for it to be tagged as a success project, the Central government said that electrification level in rural areas is more than 82 percent ranging from 47 to 100 percent across various States.
- Aiding the government’s effort in this mission is the ‘The Energy Access India’ (EAI) programme - funded by United States Agency for International Development, and implemented by the Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship and New Ventures India - which works with multiple startups, including Aga Khan Foundation, Grassroots & Rural Innovative Development Private Limited, ONergy, and Oorja Development Solutions.
- According to a report by The Climate Group, there are 300 million Indians who lack access to electricity, and another 100 million have access to less than four hours per day.
- Mlinda partnered with the IKEA Foundation to support 5,000 families in Jharkhand, bringing access to clean energy.Mlinda, the Kolkata-based international startup, designs, installs, operates, and maintains solar microgrids for rural communities in Jharkhand.
- The reasons for the slowdown is attributed to the aggressive grid expansion policies that pose a threat to commercial viability of off-grid business models.Hence, Colm recommends startups to frame multiple dimensions to access energy with complementary products or integrated demand creation, thereby addressing those needs which cannot be addressed by the grid that are available through government subsidies.To ensure commercial viability, often due to limited demand and low willingness to pay, startups are providing complementary products and services to generate additional revenue.
Next Story
