What to know about this Lending Partner
Status update — July 17, 2017
Kiva and Gham Power have agreed to end their partnership after 30 months and $11,100 raised. Gham Power joined Kiva as an experimental partner, hoping to provide loans for nano-grids in some of the remotest parts of Nepal. Since the partnership began, Gham Power has faced regulatory challenges due to the complexity of the approvals required to manage foreign funding in Nepal. Because of this reason, Gham Power agrees that continued Kiva financing is not fitting or feasible at this time. We thank Gham Power for the collaboration, and wish them success in their future endeavors. If the regulations change which enable Kiva to partner with Gham Power in the future, Kiva is willing to re-open their line of funding. We will first conduct any additional monitoring and due diligence tasks we believe necessary before allowing the partner to begin fundraising for new loans.
Partner Description:
Gham Power is a for-profit company that develops and installs commercial-scale solar projects in Nepal. The company provides the tools, engineering, design, training and financial models for solar systems that cut diesel consumption and power rural communities that would otherwise be without power. Since it was founded in 2010, Gham has installed solar power for for more than 400 clients ranging from rural communities to urban industries.
Gham Power is recognized by the Nepal Government as a company that is pre-approved to install solar home systems and institutional solar PV systems. Gham has 2 branch offices and over 10 installation partners across the country.
Gham Power has been awarded a 4 star rating from the Global Impact Investing Rating System.
A unique lending approach:
With Kiva funding, Gham Power is able to offer loans to fund the upfront cost of a very small electricity utility grid. The loan is disbursed to an individual entrepreneur, who in turn provides access to solar energy to other members of the community. This loan enables the individual to both start a business and create solar energy infrastructure in rural residential communities.