“The partnership with Powertrust helps us on cash-flow planning and is an ideal example of blended finance – making us more competitive with donors”
Interview
Raghu, how was your first experience working with Powertrust?
It was a very fast process. We got introduced to Powertrust in September 2022, and one transaction was quickly closed in the month of December. Overall, it has been a very nice and professional experience. Powertrust moved quickly to contract, and once that agreement was signed, we delivered the RE credit and they paid.
We now have a pipeline of more than 20 projects over multiple sites, it’s a very strong partnership. At E-hands Energy, our concept is to provide power and microgrids to remote and underprivileged areas. I believe all of our projects will qualify for the Powertrust criteria.
“It was a very fast process, a very professional experience.”
Has it been technically difficult to plug into the Powertrust Platform?
No, it has not been complicated, they have been quite easy to deal with. We are putting in a lot of time and effort to streamline and provide the data that Powertrust wants. I would say we are still learning and that’s fine – it’s a very new thing. Powertrust’s approach is very innovative, they are a front runner and thought leader – and they have thought out the whole process very well.
How important is this partnership for your business plans?
This partnership is very important at 3 levels. It helps us on cash flow planning, because Powertrust pays for the D-RECS upfront. It projects us as company moving towards Net Zero and complying with the Sustainable Development goals. Finally, and importantly, it is an ideal example of blended finance. I have shared this with a multi-million grant foundation, and they were blown away by the idea, because they don’t want to be seen as the sole giver. Donors want the risk to be shared, and their investment to be leveraged through this type of blended financing.
“The partnership with Powertrust helps us on cash-flow planning and is an ideal example of blended finance – making us more competitive with donors.”
Do you think this financing from Powertrust will help you deliver more impact?
To power a village with 50 homes, the cost is USD $20 to $25K. A partnership with Powertrust would help us cover about 10 to 15% of the project. Either we use that money for long term maintenance of the site, or we lower the cost for users even further. So Powertrust has a direct impact.
The first initiative we partnered with them is very high impact. It is an eye hospital in a remote area, where the grid power is available maybe only 2 to 3 hours a day, the hospital runs mainly on diesel generator. With the use of solar, we have been able to reduce the use of diesel by 60%. The money saved directly helps this charity hospital to do more surgery for the poor – they estimate up to 1000 additional cataract surgeries a year, thanks to the savings on fuel.