Press Release

Demand for rural solar home lighting systems in India to reach 3,000 MW by 2018

Hundreds of thousands of Indian villages are either not connected to the country’s power grid, or lack uninterrupted power supply. It is estimated that more than half of the country’s 1.2 billion people do not have access to electricity.
pv magazine

Solar home lighting systems and other distributed generation solutions have acted as an alternative to the states spending large sums of money to extend the reach of and improve the reliability of grid in such areas. India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has led the effort for the adoption of distributed generation by providing subsidies and easy loans through the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
However, like with all things government in India, the bureaucracy has done as much harm as it has done good for the sector. Even now, when the solar costs have fallen 54% in the past three years, cost and technology options for rural solar market in India are stuck in the government stipulated specifications and service models. Loop Solar, an entrepreneurial venture based in the National Capital Region (NCR) of India, decided to relook at this market with a fresh approach.
The company found that if the market is allowed to grow outside of all government subsidies, it can add around 3,000 MW of solar in for of small solar home lighting systems and lanterns in the next five years. The company then set about identifying the key issues in the market and working out ways to address them. Product quality, its simplicity of use, financing, customization of products, last mile reach of distribution and after-sales service emerged as the most contentious issues.
The challenge at hand was to address all these issues within a single business model. Current distribution models of institutional (profit or non-profit) partnerships, company owned branches, micro-franchising and traditional distribution, all had their share of shortcomings. Loop Solar decided to think from scratch and come out with a variant of traditional distribution and mix it with the entrepreneurial drive of people in villages and semi-urban pockets of India.
The model has thus been named ‘Open Loop Network’. Loop Solar’s innovative product design would bring quality, simplicity and ease of customization. Traditional distribution channels would provide the competition, volumes and outreach. Entrepreneurial zeal of local people will help solve financing and after-sales support.
Loop Solar is now busy building up a distribution network, creating processes and helping train people. The aim is to build an entrepreneurial India-wide rural solar specific assembly, distribution, installation and service network. The company plans to begin its sales operations in June 2014 and has already received a considerable interest. Several large distributors with a country-wide rural reach and a large number of local entrepreneurs have already shown their interest.