“Growing SMEs: It’s Time to Invest!” With this message statement, E+Co partner, Netherlands-based BiD Network, has begun promotion of their upcoming entrepreneur/investor conference. The three-day event, scheduled for June 2-4, 2010 in The Hague, Netherlands, will be focused on access to finance for developing country SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises).
From entrepreneur “pitch” opportunities to a unique “Practitioner’s Forum” in which seasoned investors will lead a two day dialog on SME Finance (what works, what doesn’t, and what’s next), the conference will attract approximately 100 entrepreneurs from the developing world, each with the hope of securing financing from the angel and institutional investors that will be in attendance.
E+Co Board Member and Investment Committee Chair Pieter van Tuyll, together with E+Co Investment Committee Member Hadewych Cels will be on several panels. Commenting on the reason for his participation in the conference, seasoned entrepreneur Van Tuyll stated: “I know from my own experience the challenges faced by entrepreneurs. For every entrepreneur that succeeds, there are dozens that don’t. For the same reason that I am a strong supporter of E+Co’s work in clean energy enterprise, I am pleased to participate in the “Growing SMEs” conference, in order to share my experiences and create opportunity for each entrepreneur with a vision and the dedication to bring that vision to fruition.”
BiD Network Thierry Sanders has high hopes for the June event: “This conference will be the culmination of five years of work with developing world entrepreneurs. We are extremely pleased to afford them both the opportunity to showcase their businesses and connect them with investors. And at the end of the day, however, the most critical element of our work is to improve incomes and contribute to economic stability in the developing world through these small and medium entrepreneurs.”
E+Co Amsterdam Director Paul van Aalst, who maintains a close working relationship with the BiD Network and is on their Advisory Board, sees the conference as a tremendous opportunity for E+Co in its role as the clean energy investment partner of BiD Network. “E+Co and BiD Network have worked closely together for many years, and continue discussion on closer collaboration. This upcoming conference will be a great showcase for many of the developing world entrepreneurs that BiD Network has so diligently supported over the years. We are excited to meet with some of the clean energy entrepreneurs with bankable business plans that may be ready for E+Co investment capital.”
Last week, I was lucky enough to attend several sessions of Investment Officer meetings after having been with E+Co for only a short while. As an intern, I usually spend my time editing education materials, so having the opportunity to see the E+Co model in action was truly eye opening. It was not only a fascinating first-hand look at how the investment process works, but also an opportunity to interact with the team.
The meetings brought together investment officers from all of the regions we work in – Asia, Africa and Central America. Personally, it was a great way for me to get to know the people I work with in the Bloomfield office as well as the dedicated team E+Co has on the ground throughout the world.
It was inspiring to hear Immanuel Muro, a Tanzania-based Investment Officer, describe how important it is to him that the projects he works on help his country and its citizens prosper. All of the Investment Officers expressed similar views on how important it is that the work they do benefits the communities in which they work.
Additionally, several Investment Officers presented case studies of particular projects they have been working on. Alex Remy, a Costa Rica-based Investment Officer, gave a presentation that included two photos that really struck me as encompassing an interesting dichotomy inherent in many of the companies we work with. The first photo depicted a donkey hauling several solar panels along a rural road for families living off the grid and the second showed rows of solar panels atop a government building in San Salvador. Both were projects of one El Salvador-based solar PV company called SEESA. They work to not only bring electrification to rural families in underserved communities, but also to raise the profile and awareness of PV as a clean alternative source of energy in urban settings.
It was similarly fascinating to hear from Investment Officer Vincent Yankey talk about the improved cookstove industry in Ghana. It was remarkable to be able to actually see one of the simple cookstoves, hand-built from scrap metal and clay, and realize how transformative that one item can be to a family’s way of life. In addition, we learned about the intricacies and difficulties of using carbon finance to fund the growth of a cookstove business.
All in all, it was an inspiring and informative several days for me. I came back to the Bloomfield office with a deeper understanding of the importance of the work E+Co does around the world, and am glad I am able to contribute in some small way.
Successful environmental sustainability efforts keep the local political, social and environmental factors under consideration. It is for this reason that Keith and Amy Sutter set off for a 1-year trip around the world to document efforts by green entrepreneurs in building a more environmental sustainable future. While in Cambodia in February they met with Rin Seyha, managing director of SME RE, an E+Co partner company that is selling environmentally friendly biomass gasifiers that provide electrical power for small and medium companies such as rice mills and brick factories.
“We were interested in meeting with Seyha, because we wanted to get a point of view from a company that was operating in the private sector in Cambodia,” said Keith. While there are thousands of international NGOs and non-profits working in Cambodia to help build the badly needed infrastructure to meet the basic needs of citizens, the drawback with reliance on NGOs is that the funding is often unpredictable. Building a profitable business, as SME RE has, eliminates this issue, keeping control at the local level.
Amy added, “Seyha and his team are helping to build an environmentally sustainable energy infrastructure for the critical brick industry. As a real estate attorney and LEED AP, I can see how SME RE customers will have an advantage when Cambodia begins to offer incentives for green technology as Thailand and Vietnam already have.” While SME RE customers are largely making the switch to biomass gasifiers for the financial savings ($0.07-$0.10 kw/h with SME RE technology as compared to $0.20 kw/h for electricity from the grid), the long term environmental and competitive advantages are substantial.
E+Co investor, Norfund, talks about clean energy investing in developing countries:
We are looking to expand into new areas and ways to support smaller renewable projects. Many of the opportunities are on a smaller scale than we currently operate, so we will work alongside intermediaries such as debt institutions or private equity funds who can provide us with access to investees, such as solar and other smaller scale technologies. We have already invested(via one of our funds) in a solar panel distributor in Nicaragua which has proved to be a great success, and are looking for new opportunities with the financial intermediary E+Co.’
On Monday, February 22, E+Co Investment Officers from 3 continents and 7 countries came together with E+Co Executives and Staff to share regional investment tactics, discuss local markets and develop a unified investment scale up strategy. Read the rest of this entry »
Interest in E+Co and our work was strong among Harvard students, faculty and students from other schools at the 12th Annual Harvard Business School African Business Conference. I took part in the cleantech panel. Students posed thoughtful questions around serving off grid communities with solar technology, the future potential of biofuels and competition with African food sources, carbon finance and why Africa has been virtually left behind in these transactions.
What impressed me most was the huge number – over 500 students attended – of highly educated, motivated and enthusiastic young Africans who stand ready to return to Africa seeking business opportunities that are aimed at serving their communities with products and services that improve living standards, protect the environment, cure the sick and feed the hungry. Those who remain pessimistic of Africa’s future haven’t witnessed the brain power poised to improve it.”
In a New York Times editorial on February 19th titled “The Revolution Has Gone Mobile,” the most important line is this: “.we…have a lot to learn”. Distance learning, service provision, information sharing and such specific applications as mobile payment systems and entrepreneur development offer enormous promise.
They also present an enormous challenge: to see beyond the “gee whiz” dimensions of the technology and realize the “OMG” potential to improve lives for the one-third of the world lacking basic energy, water, sanitation and financial service, people who can pay for modern services but who are trapped in the 19th Century because of a lack of infrastructure that the mobile revolution can address.
Roberto Bonilla isn’t waiting for the government to do something about climate change and poverty, he’s taking matters into his own hands. He’s not a politician or pop star, nor does he head an international organization or grassroots movement. Mr. Bonilla is just a businessman running a small electrical supply store in El
Salvador.
But what a difference a business makes. Mr. Bonilla owns and operates SEESA, an electrical supply store turned solar system shop in San Salvador. In a country of over 7 million people where more than 1/3 of the population lives without access to energy, SEESA’s solar home and grid-connected systems will provide lighting and electricity to 7,500 people, saving approximately 15,000 tons in
carbon dioxide emissions over the next 20 years. No small feat for a family-run business. Read the rest of this entry »
Once again, E+Co-supported SELCO India is in the news! This time the solar energy company, based in India, is highlighted as a viable clean energy solutions business at the World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerland. Take a look at an interview conducted by NDTV India in a program called “The Unstoppable Indians”of Harish Hande, Managing Director of SELCO India and E+Co Board Member below (beginning around the 10 minute mark). The clip also highlights several other entrepreneurship endeavors coming out of India.
E+Co CEO Christine Eibs Singer will be speaking at the Financial Women’s Association of New York and Baruch College are proud to present “The Green Revolution in the Emerging World” on Thursday evening, February 11, 2010.
This exciting program will feature a panel of professionals discussing the role that emerging nations are playing in critical environmental issues such as alternative energy development, sustainable environmental practices, and carbon trading.
The event will beheld at the Baruch College Vertical Campus, 55 Lexington Avenue, New York City, beginning at 5:30 p.m. with refreshments and networking, followed by the panel discussion from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
This event is sponsored by the Global Agenda Committee of the Financial Women’s Association of New York and the Weissman Center for International Business, Baruch College. The event is open to FWA members as well as non-members.
Registration and payment by credit card is available from the FWA website ($25 fee for FWA members and $40 for non-members and guests). To register visit http://www.fwa.org/event/2010_0211_grevolution.htm. Select the Online Registration button from the event description page.
We look forward to having you join us for this stimulating and informative program.
Roberto Bonilla isn’t waiting for the government to do something about climate change and poverty, he’s taking matters into his own hands. He’s not a politician or pop star, nor does he head an international organization or grassroots movement. Mr. Bonilla is just a businessman running a small electrical supply store in El