April 2008
Creative Destruction
GPAus Windpower’s simple and wonderfully innovative business model allows local communities to invest in local wind farms and buy power from the same facility.
The business model involves the creative destruction of the downstream energy industry by allowing customers to become investors directly in generation assets. By rolling the model out in multiple countries, it has the potential to change the global energy industry.
One of the challenges with the concept is that it only requires a fairly modest corporate investment to get it started. Without the need for further investment and the consequent balance sheet benefits, listed energy companies find it difficult to get excited about the potential opportunities. Listed companies are also reluctant to dilute their equity and share ownership with communities in the way that this model envisages. In Australia, we have canvassed the major energy companies without success as it appears to not provide them with the right benefits and holds the threat of changing the dynamics of the whole industry and threatening entrenched strategies.
Engaging Millions of People
By enabling 1,000 community investors to ‘own’ each 2MW turbine, the community become part of the solution. Through the refinancing of each wind farm, the development of additional assets and the repetitive refinancing, the community engagement potential is huge.
In developing countries, the community investment model can be restructured and, in conjunction with micro-finance, can enable economic development for the bottom on the pyramid. We will have the answer to “ Its such a big problem, what can I do!”
For more information on this exciting project, contact Australian CleanTech
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