Shri Shakti Alternative Energy Technologies (SSAET) received US$2.2 million in seed money to open 300 energy retail stores across India. They will sell solar thermal and PV systems, solar cookers and water pumps, instant gas water heaters, and energy efficient products and appliances. SSAET is a subsidiary of Indias largest private distributor of liquefied petroleum gas. The company sells solar lanterns, power packs and home lighting systems, and offers customer financing and service.
Two stores are already operating. One in Kakinada was financed by the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency and another in Hyderabad was financed directly by Shri Shakti.
The seed money is a combination of loan, equity and grant, and comes from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), as part of the $25 million Photovoltaic Market Transformation Initiative. The Initiative was created in 1998 to spur solar energy markets in India, Kenya and Morocco. This marks the first investment; others are in the works for all three countries.
Source: Environment News Service: [sorry this link is no longer available]
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