Business plan for cheap energy-efficient LED bulbs

Households will be able to buy energy-efficient LED bulbs at a steeply discounted price of Rs 10 following a business plan developed by group of government entities along with electricity distribution firms.
The move is part of the government's ambitious plan to boost energy efficiency by providing Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology-based lighting solutions at affordable cost.
Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) under the Power Ministry together with Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) and electricity distribution companies (discoms) have developed the new business model.
"BEE together with EESL has worked with electricity distribution companies to develop a business model under which EESL procures LED bulbs in bulk and sells them to households at Rs 10 instead of the market price of Rs 400," a Power ministry statement said.

Set up by the Power Ministry, EESL is a joint venture of four public sector undertakings -- NTPC, PFC, REC and Power Grid -- that focusses on implementing energy efficiency projects.
An LED bulb utilises one-tenth of energy as compared to a normal incandescent bulb and half as much energy as a Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) to produce the same amount of light.

Under the business model, the discoms repay EESL over a period of five to eight years from the savings that accrue due to use of this energy efficient lighting technology.
The statement said that EESL has already completed a number of projects to retrofit existing streetlights to energy efficient LED streetlights as well as a 7.5 lakh LED bulb replacement project for households in Puducherry.

In August this year, after an MOU between EESL and the Andhra Pradesh government was signed, EESL completed the procurement process of 20 lakh LED bulbs last week. Almost the entire lighting industry participated in the bid and the lowest quoted price was Rs 204 per LED bulb, it said.
BEE under the Power Ministry has initiated a systematic process to exploit the energy-saving potential of LEDs and to bring them into large scale use as soon as possible, it said.