Support for the program “Lighting a Billion Lives” for the electrification of three villages in India

The Air Liquide Foundation works with TERI’s Lighting a Billion Lives program by financing the electrification of three villages, which will permit 750 people to access clean electricity.

The Air Liquide Foundation is aware of the challenge of providing access to “clean” energy for development, in particular in rural areas that do not have electricity. One and a half billion men and women throughout the world do not have access to electricity and a quarter of them live in India. The consumption of oil-based fossil fuels not only pollutes the environment but is also very expensive for the families concerned.

The Energy and Resource Institute (TERI), is a Delhi-based global non profit organization working on creating innovative solutions for a sustainable future. By launching its Lighting a Billion Lives campaign (LaBL), TERI’s ambition is to provide clean lighting to populations that do not have access to a basic necessity such as electricity. Today, LaBL has provided over 600 villages across India with solar charging stations, serving 165,000 people. The LaBL campaign trains local entrepreneurs to operate the solar electricity stations in villages, so that solar lanterns can be recharged during the day. These lanterns are then rented in the evening for a modest sum to the village’s inhabitants. The local entrepreneur, in charge of managing and maintaining the station, earns revenue through the rental income.