Global Off-Grid Lighting Association (GOGLA) has invited bids from consultants to study the solar lantern and solar home system market in India.

The consultants will have to study the Bangladesh and Nepal distributed renewable energy sector with limited scope.

As per the bi-annual GOGLA market sales reports, despite seeing a decline in the sales of quality-verified products since 2019, India remains one of the largest markets for solar lanterns and solar home systems.

While sales in India have declined from 953,000 between January and June 2019 to a low of 329,000 units between January and June 2021, recent reports indicate an uptick to 457,000 between July and December 2021.

Source: GOGLA

The last date to submit the bids is September 9, 2022. The final presentation of the study should be done within 18 weeks.

The research will help inform GOGLA and its members on the current market status, future market needs, and outlook.

The study aims to analyze the reasons for the decline in demand for solar home systems and lanterns in India. It will also elaborate on the current and future role, uses, and applications of solar lanterns and solar home systems in India in line with increased energy access and changing needs regarding product profiles.

It will also help the association to understand the current status of the distributed renewable energy markets in Bangladesh and Nepal in terms of the state of the solar lanterns and solar home systems markets (pre-installed and future demand) and appliances trends, policy, and private sector participation.

The successful consultant firm should have a track record of carrying out research projects similar in scope and complexity. It should have experience developing and implementing research designs for and with the private sector and understanding the off-grid lighting and electrification sector, particularly in India. The firm should have experience drafting high-quality written reports in English.

GOGLA has earmarked $30,000, including taxes and all other expenses for the project. The technical proposal should detail the suggested approach and work plan to carry out the project and include the CVs of key research team staff.

Last November, GOGLA had reported that close to 3.5 million off-grid solar lighting products were sold globally in the first half (1H) of 2021, a 4% decrease in sales compared to the second half of 2020. Global sales of lighting products and appliances were 22% and 9% lower than in the second half of 2019.

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