Myanmar: US solar firm tackles cost barriers through instalment system

Myanmar: US solar firm tackles cost barriers through instalment system

A US-based solar product company launched its services in Myanmar with the
support of the International Finance Corporation and United Nations Capital
Development Fund to widen access to clean energy among the rural population.
The opening of its first store in Myanmar was accompanied with the
introduction of the instalment system for purchases.

Greenlight Planet launched its retail store on July 6 under the brand Sun
King in Bago Region. The store offers both EasyBuy and upfront payment
options across a range of solar lamps and home systems. The store is the
company's first branch in the country and also in Asia.

The store's launch was organised in collaboration with the International
Finance Corporation (IFC) as a part of its "Lighting Myanmar" program. At
the launch event, representatives from the IFC and Greenlight Planet
addressed the need for acceleration of sustainable access to clean energy
and the role technologies such as EasyBuy play towards achieving this goal.

According to the IFC, more than 65 percent of Myanmar's population, a total
of seven million households, has no access to grid-based electricity
services. In rural areas, more than two thirds of households rely on
candles, kerosene, low-quality batteries and diesel generators to meet their
energy needs.

With the assistance of the World Bank Group and other donors, Myanmar's
government has adopted the National Electrification Plan, which aims to
achieve universal access to sustainable electricity services by 2030 through
a combination of grid extension and off-grid programs.

Launched in June 2016, the IFC-led "Lighting Myanmar" programwill support
this goal by helping international and Myanmar-based companies create a
commercial and sustainable market for high-quality off-grid energy
solutions, including solar lanterns, solar home systems, and mini-grids.

The Sun King project is another step forward for the program.

Solar is already widespread in this area but most systems are low quality
and unreliable, providing an opportunity for quality assured solar lighting
products to enter the market and compete.

Sun King's parent company, Greenlight Planet, is a Chicago-headquartered
company which focuses on distributing a small-scale solar home system to
remote, off-grid customers through a vast network of micro-entrepreneurs,
distribution partners, and its proprietary EasyBuy instalment payment
technology.

EasyBuy service allows customers to pay for solar products in daily or
weekly instalments. This instalment system aims at breaking down the cost
barrier to clean energy access and hence broaden access to clean energy
among the rural population.

"From what we have seen in economies with large off-grid populations around
the world, technologies such as EasyBuy are revolutionising not just access
to energy but also financing, especially in the micro-lending sector.

"Greenlight Planet is committed to invest and remain at the forefront of
this sector with the help of robust technology and trusted partnerships in
the region," said DhavalRadia, the company's vice president.

According to the press release from Sun King, the business sees the 38
million individuals living off-grid in Myanmar as its main customer base,
aiming to provide clean, reliable and safe solar energy products with their
instalment payment method. The system matches customer expenditure with
income, making it affordable for customers to pay for their energy needs in
small amounts in daily or weekly instalments, and it automatically links
payment to product usage, which ensures accountability.

Sun King's country manager told The Myanmar Times that it prioritises the
rural population, scattered among villages, and is not concerned with
large-scale commercial or industrial clients.

"Our focus is distributing a small-scale solar home system to rural villages
which do not have connection to grids," said KoThet Win Naing, country
manager of Sun King.

"We are not focusing on industry or business use."

Sun King started its operation in January this year, and is now in the
second quarter of their operation, covering 12 townships in three regions:
Bago, Ayeyarwady and Yangon regions.

Currently, Sun King is collecting payments manually, leveraging employees
from the regions they cover, managed by their corresponding area sales
manager, but this will soon be replaced by the EasyBuy payment system, a
Pay-As-You-Go service, which allows a 100-percent integrated payment
network. The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) offered a "last
mile" finance model from which provided a grant to Sun King to extend its
Pay-As-You-Go service in Myanmar for its two initial years of operation.

KoThet Win Naing told The Myanmar Times that the EasyBuy system is being
developed hand-in-hand with mobile payment technologies in cooperation with
several telephone companies in order to overcome Myanmar's underdeveloped
banking system. They have also developed a system called ANGASA, which
provides the necessary codes for top up, tracks and manages payment
collection processes.

"Gaining access to clean, reliable and safe Sun King products leads to
remarkable developments in communities.

"Children study for longer, businesses earn more, and families experience
better air quality - all while cutting overall expenditure on daily energy
needs," Ms Radia added.

Sun King hopes to achieve its first 1000 sales in Myanmar, KoThet Win Naing
told The Myanmar Times. The company plans to saturate the market, and extend
its coverage to all regions and townships in Myanmar, becoming the premium
brand of solar home systems with the world's best Pay-As-You-Go payment
system.

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Link to Original Article:
http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/business/26832-us-solar-firm-tackles-cost-b
arriers-through-instalment-system.html

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com