'EESL Has Distributed Nearly 351 Million Led Bulbs Till Date, Generating Annual Energy Savings Of 4.55 Billion MWh'

Founded in 2009 by the government of India, Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) is responsible for market related activities of the National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE), one of the eight national missions under the Prime Minister’s National Action Plan on climate change. With an unprecedented 140 times growth in two years, EESL’s flagship initiative, Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All (UJALA), has revolutionised India’s LED market and reportedly reduced carbon emissions by up to 32 million tonnes every year. In an interaction with Potshangbam July, Venkatesh Dwivedi, director (projects), EESL, speaks about the success of the UJALA and SLNP schemes, the benefits of its business model, and its ambitious goals, going forward.

EB: Tell us more about the Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All (UJALA) and the Street Light National Programme (SLNP).

UJALA was launched in January 2015, and aims to promote efficient lighting, enhance awareness to increase the adoption of efficient equipment that reduces electricity bills and help preserve the environment. UJALA is the largest non-subsidy based LED lighting programme in the world. The company’s innovative business model obviates the need for discoms to invest upfront for energy-efficient appliances. EESL procures the appliances and provides them to consumers at a variety of points of sale at a rate of 70 per LED bulb, 220 per LED tubelight and 1,110 per fan, all of which are much below the market price.

India’s streetlights form a crucial component of the nation’s investment in infrastructure and road safety. To bring in mass-scale transformation, EESL has adopted a unique strategy by joining hands with states, municipal bodies and urban local bodies (ULBs) in what is called the SLNP. EESL replaces the conventional streetlights with LEDs at its own cost, with no upfront investment by municipalities, thereby making the programme’s adoption even more attractive. Over a specified period, EESL is repaid from savings accrued through the reduction in energy and maintenance costs for municipalities. A seven-year contract with the local bodies guarantees uptime of over 95 per cent, a minimum energy saving of typically 50 per cent, and free replacements and maintenance of lights at no additional cost to civic partners.