Dhaka, Bangladesh – One of Bangladesh’s leading providers of off-grid solar energy solutions, Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd., has expressed interest in doing business with the manufacturers of Global LEAP Awards winners and finalists. The Global LEAP Awards is an international competition that will recognize the world’s best low-voltage direct current (DC) off-grid appliances on the basis of their affordability, quality, and energy efficiency.
“Through our sister concern Rural Services Foundation, Rahimafrooz serves off-grid households and businesses throughout Bangladesh,” said Sohel Ahmed, Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd.’s General Manager and Head of Business. “Packaging our solar home systems with the appliances identified by the Global LEAP Awards will help us continue to make a strong case to our customers that we’re offering them the very best.”
Rural Services Foundation is a non-profit initiative of Rahimafrooz that sells and services a range of off-grid solar home systems. Rural Services Foundation operates more than 500 offices throughout Bangladesh, and has more than 4,500 employees. Since 2006, Rural Services Foundation has sold more than 375,000 off-grid solar home systems.
Tens of millions of Bangladeshis have no access to grid electricity. To meet their lighting needs, off-grid households typically rely on kerosene, a fossil fuel with dangerous indoor air quality and climate change consequences.
Global LEAP is an initiative of the Clean Energy Ministerial that supports commercial markets for clean energy access products and services that help off-grid populations transition away from fuels like kerosene. The Global LEAP Awards’ first competition will identify the world’s most energy-efficient, highest quality low-voltage DC LED room lighting appliances and flat-panel color televisions.
“The Global LEAP Awards were envisioned as a way to help companies like Rahimafrooz and their customers make more informed decisions about the off-grid appliances on the market,” said the United States Department of Energy’s Caroline McGregor, who leads the Global Lighting and Energy Access Partnership (Global LEAP) initiative. “Because super-efficient lights and televisions give off-grid consumers better value for their money than lower quality products, that helps off-grid retailers sell more energy systems—all of which helps the market grow.”
Energy efficiency is a critical energy access tool because super-efficient off-grid appliances can run on smaller, more affordable power systems. Appliance quality helps sustain off-grid consumer demand—a power system is a significant investment for off-grid families in the developing world, and it’s important that the appliances that accompany the system work as promised.
“We’ve sold more than 90,000 solar home systems this year, and we expect to sell 150,000 before the year’s end,” said Rahimafrooz’s Utpal Bhattacharjee. “Reliable, energy-efficient off-grid appliances are an essential part of our business strategy.”
Manufacturers of eligible products can find more information and nominate their products at www.GlobalLEAPawards.org.
About Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd.
Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd. (RREL) is a pioneering, award-winning solar renewable energy solutions provider in Bangladesh with more than 25 years of experience. RREL has been instrumental in the development and growth of Bangladesh’s off-grid solar home system market, which is the world’s largest. Through its partnership with Rural Services Foundation, RREL sells tens of thousands of solar home systems each year—each packaged with two or more off-grid appliances. For more information see: www.rsf-bd.org
About Global LEAP
The Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) is a high-level global forum to share best practices and promote policies and programs that encourage and facilitate the transition to a global clean energy economy. CEM initiatives are based on areas of common interest among participating governments and other stakeholders and help reduce emissions, improve energy security, provide energy access, and sustain economic growth. The Global Lighting and Energy Access Partnership (Global LEAP) is a CEM initiative to catalyze and transform markets for off-grid energy products and services.www.cleanenergyministerial.org/GlobalLEAP
Contacts
Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd.
Utpal Bhattacharjee
utpal.bhattacharjee@rahimafrooz.com
Global LEAP Awards
Matt Jordan
mjordan@clasponline.org
Publish your content with EB Publishing
It's about who you reach. Get your news, events, jobs and thought leadership seen by those who matter to you.
