In its endeavour to ensure last-mile energy access to the rural communities in India, Smart Power India (SPI), a subsidiary ofThe Rockefeller Foundation has recently marked the operations of the 500th mini-grid in Laxmanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The total capacity stands at 15.1 MW for generating renewable energy for the rural masses. SPI and its Energy Service Companies (ESCO) partners’ are credited with the world’s largest portfolio of mini-grids.
Smart Power India has been working in the states of U.P., Bihar, and Jharkhand for the last six years towards ensuring equitable energy access to the last mile. As on date, the program impacts half a billion rural lives. It has partnered with 13 developers, including Tata Power Renewable Microgrid.
A mini-grid is an off-grid electricity distribution network involving small-scale electricity generation. Often conflated with microgrids, a mini-grid is sometimes defined as having a power rating less than 11kW and as being disconnected from utility-scale grids.
Commenting on the addition of the 500th mini-grid, Jaideep Mukherjee, CEO at Smart Power India said, “We proudly support the Government of India’s initiative of Atmanirbhar Bharat with our Micro-Enterprise Development (MED) program where we work towards providing last-mile electricity for productive uses in rural India. We are glad to partner with such enterprising ESCOs in achieving this historical milestone. Access to reliable energy is the base for the development of any economy. and we continue to support our partners in achieving the same.
It also touches on other SDGs through services enabled by electricity
Adding to Mukherji, Mukesh Khandelwal, Business Unit Head at one of our ESCOs expressed, “Together with SPI, we have been successful in impacting the lives of several customers through mini-grids. The impact has been manifold, not just restricted to access to electricity for mere lighting purposes but beyond. Livelihood opportunities have increased, there is better access to health care, education, and institutional services.”
Mukherji also added, “SPI is consciously focusing its efforts to work collaboratively with stakeholders to increase access to reliable energy, economic development, and clean energy, not just in India but on a global scale. In order to accelerate this momentum, on 2nd November 2021, we as part of the Rockefeller Foundation proudly announced the creation of the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, a multi-stakeholder platform to enable equitable access to energy across the globe.”
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