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London (pte045/30.01.2003/14:28) - The Shell Foundation http://www.shell.com has today announced the establishment of an energy fund to help small and medium sized energy companies (SMEs) in Uganda.
The $4million Uganda Energy Fund is a partnership between Dfcu Leasing (Uganda), the Shell Foundation and Shell Uganda. It aims to address the serious lack of modern and sustainable energy sources in the country by helping individual SMEs overcome the financial and technical barriers they face as they try to expand.
The fund will offer lease financing at competitive rates for the purchase of energy related equipment including off-grid electrification schemes, all types of liquid, gaseous and solid fuels, and all types of renewable energy. An additional $250,000 has been set aside for the provision of business skills training and mentoring support to SMEs. Companies, non-government organisations and co-operatives will all be able to apply for financing and business support if they are involved in the manufacture, supply or distribution of energy products. The great majority of Ugandans depend on traditional fuel sources and 98% of rural households have no access to grid electricity. Despite the efforts of government and external agencies much still needs to be done to supply clean and cheap energy to a large percentage of the population.
Chris West, Deputy Director of the Shell Foundation said: "There are tremendous opportunities in Uganda to make a difference to people's lives and to the environment by the introduction of modern and clean energy sources. It is a country very rich in natural resources but which suffers from poor infrastructure and low levels of investment. We and our partners want to give the smaller local players in the energy field the opportunity to grow their businesses and to begin to supply the country's burgeoning energy needs."
The Shell Foundation is a UK registered charity funded by the Royal Dutch/Shell Group of Companies.
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