Wind for Prosperity is an innovative, commercially-based business model to bring affordable and reliable electricity to rural populations that currently lack it. Anchored on wind power technology, Wind for Prosperity creates an opportunity for business, government, and financial institutions to combine their talents to improve people’s lives and generate risk-adjusted returns for private investors.
Adds Albæk, As one of the biggest corporate initiatives to combat energy poverty and deploy green technology in developing countries, Wind for Prosperity is a triple-win – generating growth, reducing pollution, and doing both profitably."
"Sustainable Energy for All is about public-private-partnerships," says Kandeh Yumkella, the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Representative and Chief Executive. "We need new and good technologies to help the energy poor access clean, reliable, affordable and modern energy services to manage their everyday lives. If good technologies can’t be financed, an energy revolution is impossible. Vestas’ Wind for Prosperity will help transform lives and communities."
Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company, strongly shares the vision behind Wind for Prosperity and will focus on managing the development and construction of Wind for Prosperity projects; while Vestas will focus on wind-mapping, site design, and sourcing and refurbishing wind turbines.
"Addressing the lack of access to clean, reliable and affordable energy services for billions of people is one of the world’s most critical development challenges and is becoming increasingly prominent on the international agenda," says Mohamed Al Ramahi, Masdar’s Chief Operating Officer. "For the last 40 years, the United Arab Emirates has been committed to helping countries achieve economic growth and introducing technology that allows access to energy. Wind for Prosperity is aligned with Masdar’s mission to work on the introduction of sustainable energy solutions."
Wind for Prosperity combines robust, factory-refurbished wind turbines with advanced diesel power generation to create hybrid systems that are well-suited to operate on mini-grids in remote locations with limited infrastructure. These Vestas turbines are easy to transport and erect; they have a proven track record and are easy to maintain.
The first Wind for Prosperity projects focus on up to 13 Kenyan communities that are home to more than 200,000 people. These projects – being planned in coordination with the Kenyan Ministry of Energy, Kenya Power and Light Company, and various government agencies – are expected to supply electricity at least 30% below the current cost of power production based on diesel only. Frontier Investment Management is actively involved in developing the Kenyan opportunity and together with Vestas is exploring potential Wind for Prosperity projects in other African countries.
Wind for Prosperity aims to install the hybrid power generation system in 100 communities reaching at least one million people in the next three years. Additional opportunities are being explored in countries such as Ethiopia, Tanzania, Yemen, Pakistan, Vietnam, and Nicaragua.
