May 15, 2012
"Solar home systems are put to the test"
Cambridge Science Park company Eight19, which launched its Indigo pay-as-you go personal solar electricity system last year, has begun trials in Africa.
Read the full article here
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH
May 9, 2012
Today's Daily Telegraph's "Careers in Energy" supplement features Eight19 as a leading example of the "application of science."
THE SUNDAY TIMES
April 29, 2012
Today's Sunday Times newspaper features an article on Eight19 and Indigo pay-as-you-go solar.
The "Africa Enjoys Light Bulb Moment" half page piece describes how a "British company has come up with a plan to install a 'pay as you go' charging system."
Eight19's CEO Simon Bransfield-Garth explains in the interview with The Sunday Times: "We recognised that people in Africa have the same aspirations as you or me. They don't want a system to replace a kerosene lamp. They want a system to power everything they want, such as a television."
Read the full article on page 8 of the Business supplement of today's Sunday Times paper.
BUSINESS GREEN
April 27, 2012
The Global LEAP Partnership was launched at the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) in London yesterday:
"The scheme, which has delivered highly efficient off grid solar-powered or LED lighting systems to 2.5 million people in Africa, will now aim to take lighting services to two million people in India, drawing on support and funding from over 100 businesses and charities, including First Solar, Eight19, and Philips"
Read more about the CEM's series of commitments here
ODE MAGAZINE
April 23, 2012
Eight19's Indigo pay-as-you-go solar features in the May edition of Ode Magazine.
Read the full story here
THE GLOBAL POVERTY PROJECT
April 19, 2012
"Transforming Lives With Technology" - Eight19's guest blog on The Global Poverty Project
Read the full article here
GIZMAG
April 19, 2012
Less power to cell phones, more power to the people
"Aalto University researchers are not alone in their quest to increase access to mobile technology outside the developed world. Recently, a British company called Eight19 announced a pay-as-you-go solution called IndiGo, which it is marketing as a personal electricity system for the developing world."
Read the full article here
JUST MEANS
April 18, 2012
"Sustainable Power British Company Nominated in Two Awards Categories"
Read more here
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC: PAY AS YOU GO SUNSHINE: HOW SOLAR ENERGY AND MOBILE PHONES ARE POWERING THE DEVELOPING WORLD
April 17, 2012
In today’s special edition of “Digital Diversity”, Olivia O’Sullivan, interviews Simon Bransfield-Garth, the CEO of Eight19:
"The fact that the weekly fee actually reduces users’ spend, by eliminating the cost of kerosene and charging phones, makes it much easier for us to sell into the market because we sell from the point of view of an economic proposition rather than just ‘solar-power is good’ – if you speak to someone who’s been living with kerosene for fifty years, sometimes it’s quite difficult to persuade them kerosene fumes are harmful things they don’t want to have. But if you say to someone who spends a quarter of their income on energy that they can halve their energy bill, then all of a sudden that has a direct impact – then after that they see the benefits of solar."
Read the full interview on National Geographic
ENGINEERING FOR CHANGE
April 15, 2012
"In our view, Eight19 has demonstrated admirable flexibility with its strategic partnerships, the merging of mobile technology with energy finance, and the upgrades. By building the upgrades into the business strategy, Eight19 has shown a way for homes to incrementally gain more access to power. Just as importantly, the company has also accounted for the efficiency leaps and cost declines that are certain to come as solar technology progresses."
Read the full article here