Millions of people around the world are trapped in energy poverty having access to only unsustainable and time consuming wood based fuels for cooking. At Takamoto, we think about what all of these people could be accomplishing to improve the world if only THEY could be the ones controlling their OWN energy. Farmers with cows in Kenya have this chance with Takamoto Biogas.
Biogas, the perfect solution for a reliable energy resource on a farm, was once an impossibly expensive investment for the majority of Kenyan farming households. However, today, Takamoto’s Lease-to-Own Biogas enables farmers to purchase a biogas system through affordable monthly payments for unlimited biogas. Once they have completed their payments they can enjoy all of the benefits of a modern energy that they control at no cost at all. Today, over 100 families are on their way to owning their own Takamoto Biogas systems for unlimited, free, modern cooking fuel.
While biogas in and of itself is a simple technology (put dung into an airtight container and the naturally occurring bacteria produce biogas), a biogas model that intends to “populate the world with biogas systems” gets a bit more complicated. Takamoto Biogas, has therefore developed a unique business model that focuses on creating partnerships with the appropriate specialists:
Technology: We use prefabricated biogas digesters for single day installation and easy maintenance. We use a “one size fits most” biogas digester that suits the needs of farming families who cook three meals a day and heat water for milking over biogas. And finally, we constantly evaluate and test new products on the market to ensure that these innovative farmers are able to reliably generate the most biogas for their households.
Funding: due to the nature of our work, grants are available to us to provide the capital to install many digesters while the repayments can go into a revolving fund to install more digesters. Most recently, we have developed a partnership with Kiva that enables people all around the world to lend money to our farmers to buy a biogas system on kiva.org (link to Kiva).
Payment collection: Kenya has been an innovator of mobile money and today there are over 19 million registered M-Pesa users. This makes payment collection very simple as a farmer can make a biogas payment to Takamoto Biogas from her phone.
Installation partners: We have developed a business model that can be replicated anywhere there are people who need modern, reliable energy and there is waste. We have begun working with installation partners in other regions of Kenya because it’s time these farmers were able to discover their real potential without wasting time lighting firewood.
Do you think you could help us to “populate the world with biogas systems”? Then please get in touch and together we can revolutionize the kitchens and lives of farming families.
For regular updates or to get in touch, please visit our website: www.takamotobiogas.com