This video can be downloaded here: www.ashdenawards.org The Aryavart Gramin bank won an Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy in 2008. To find out more visit the link above and check out the Ashden Awards Blog ashdenawards.blogspot.com The Aryavart Gramin bank in Uttar Pradesh used solar photovoltaic (PV) systems to back-up the unreliable grid power for some of its branches, and recognised the potential of PV for its many off-grid customers. The bank set up a bulk supply and installation agreement with TATA-BP for PV solar-home-systems, and provides loans for its customers with a good credit record to purchase the systems. To date 10100 loans have been approved and 8000 solar-home-systems installed. Local entrepreneurs are paid by the bank to service and maintain systems. The Aryavart Gramin bank has a target of 25000 solar-home-systems this year, and is promoting the idea of its SHS loan scheme to other rural banks.

This video can be downloaded here: www.ashdenawards.org Rahimafrooz Batteries won an Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy in 2006. To find out more visit the link above and check out the Ashden Awards Blog ashdenawards.blogspot.com Rahimafrooz Batteries Ltd has played a leading role in the Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Development Project (REREDP) - a large scale programme to provide solar home systems (SHS) to rural households in Bangladesh. Rahimafrooz has manufactured and supplied the rechargeable batteries for over 75000 systems, as well as charge controllers and fluorescent lamps. Rahimafrooz has also exported over 80000 batteries for PV systems, mostly to Nepal and Bhutan. Nearly 70% of households in Bangladesh are not connected to the electricity grid and so depend on kerosene for lighting. This includes most rural areas, and also the fringes of Dhaka. There are plans to extend the grid, but there is little prospect of substantial change in the near future. The REREDP, which is funded by the World Bank and GEF and managed by the Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL), initially aimed to provide 50000 systems by the end of 2007, but this has already been increased to 200000 systems because of the success of the programme, and may be further increased. IDCOL provides Participating Organisations (POs) in the programme with subsidies and concessional loans to purchase PV systems in bulk, and the partners can then provide credit to rural ...