ENERCON to promote micro-financing of solar household products

ISLAMABAD: The National Energy Conservation Centre (ENERCON) has initiated a process to conduct a study on micro-financing of solar household products that would help meet the dreams of power conservation.

The main purpose of this study is to save energy through promoting such products as households in the country consume 21.3 percent of the total energy production, a senior official at the Centre said here on Tuesday.

Talking to APP, the official said to overcome the current energy shortfall, use of renewable energy like solar is one of the most viable technology that should be adopted and promoted and added proposals have also been sought from concerned experts and organizations so as to make a comprehensive policy in this regard.

He said the potential exists for Micro-Finance Institutions (MFIs) to offer profitable loans to promote solar products.

If implemented properly the Micro-finance Providers may be able to play a pivotal role in the promotion of energy efficient household appliances like Solar lights, Solar Cookers, Solar Lanterns and Solar Geysers and many more.

The official said such loans through micro-finance institutions could help to offset high upfront cost associated with solar power technology and related products.

He said the ENERCON realizes that greater energy efficiency is a key or economic development and that is why it has decided to conduct this particular research through its National Energy Conservation Fund (ECF) to promote use of solar appliances, adding that the micro-financing service delivery model has been successfully implemented in some developing countries and it should be introduced in Pakistan.

Replying to a question, the official enumerated the key objectives of the study which include assessing the potential for provision of micro-financing services to provide solar household products, identifying appropriate number of institutions who are interested in pioneering micro-financing services and designingand outlining pilot projects for the purpose. A road map for promoting micro-financing would also be developed, he added.

The study, to be conducted both for rural and urban areas would determine identification of MFIs of the country willing to participate in the process, needs and market assessment of potential solar products and identify potential barriers to the provision of financing services and identify measures to address these barriers.

The study would also help prepare an outline for pilot projects, he said.

Giving further details, the official said surveys would be conducted in rural areas i.e. one each in Balochistan, Punjab, Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, and Gilgit Baltistan to determine the need of solar products.

To another question, he said there is also a plan to organize a national workshop to discuss initial study results and gather feedback to improve study analysis and recommendations.

Copyright APP (Associated Press of Pakistan), 2011