ENGIE : ENERGY FOR ALL are indicative of its enormous and ever-increasing impact on the world ; Vinçotte tells us about a few of these key focus points and how they are improving the world ’ s energy issues .
“ Some of the key investments that Rassembleurs d ’ Energies has led in Asia specifically include replacing fossil fuels with smart solar powered devices in India – in the states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh – through three innovative enterprises in which the fund invested : Mera Gao Power , Simpa Network , Rural Spark and Green Village Ventures ,” she explains . “ Mera Gao Power builds , owns , and operates the world ’ s most affordable microgrids , and meets the essential energy needs of off-grid communities at a competitive cost . MGP ’ s customers mostly live in isolated rural hamlets with less than 100 homes , where income is around $ 50- $ 80 per family and there is no main grid connection . The MGP business model is easily reproducible and with the support of ENGIE Rassembleurs d ’ Energies , this promising company is able to scale up . “ MGP is now serving over 130,000 people in over 1,700 villages with clean reliable power . It has delivered results that are in line with its projections and has been successful enough to attract new investors to support its growth .”
Having partners like MGP is vital to ENGIE ’ s operations , Vinçotte says . “ One of the beauties of impact investing activities is that people combine and coordinate their efforts to promote enterprises rather than compete against each other . Having partners is important so as to mitigate the risks and optimise the efficiency in closing deals . ENGIE Rassembleurs d ’ Energies will make the most of its experience gained in the energy access industry and will leverage the technical expertise and local knowledge of the ENGIE Group , while other partners are co-investors or Development Finance Institutions that will contribute through their knowledge of the sector and of the markets .”
While economies worldwide are steadily growing , people are living longer , and living conditions have improved everywhere , this does not necessarily translate to all people receiving their basic requirements . However , thanks to a combination of an increase in technological breakthroughs and the advanced levels of innovation in finance , clean energies such as solar are plummeting
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