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Off-Grid Energy

Off-grid energy focused survey products, ready to use with accompanying performance benchmarks.
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Solutions

The 60dB Energy Index

A chance to learn from your customers using our standard Energy Index question and indicator set.
Benchmarking available.
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Consumer Protection Tool

An assessment of performance
against the off-grid solar industry’s Consumer Protection Code and principles.
Consumer Protection

60dB Core
Insights

Find out more about your customers: who they are, what their experience is, what impact they experience from your product, what challenges they face.
60dB Core Insights

Inclusive Energy Opportunity

A 2023 initiative to provide access to customer insights and impact measurement to women-led/locally-owned organizations.
Inclusive Energy Opportunity

Resources

Why Off-Grid Energy Matters 2024

Customer-led views of the impact of the off-grid energy sector, as well as the relative performance of the sub-sectors within it.
Why Off-Grid Energy Matters

Off-Grid Energy Benchmarks

This is a benchmark of the performance of 137 energy organizations, across 29 countries, from 210 Lean Data projects, listening to over 39,000 customers.
Energy Benchmarks

2024 Off-Grid Energy Top Impact Awards

Ranked across 3 areas in the Energy Impact Index, these energy organizations are the Top Impact Award winners featured in Why Off-Grid Energy Matters 2024.
Top Impact Awards
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“The income I got helped me top up the school fees balance for my children. My children are now set for the next term.”

Male, 34

“Nowadays my kids don’t sleep hungry even when I get to the house late, I make them food quickly and they eat before going to bed.”

Female, 45

“I am able to leave anything cooking in the electric pressure cooker and go to the farm only to find that the food is ready and warm.”

Male, 52

“With the SHS, I can light up the whole house and easily charge my phone. I can also watch TV, and my children can play and do their schoolwork while I prepare dinner.”

Female, 48

Sectoral experience

  • Solar Lanterns

    Solar lanterns have long been seen as a ‘gateway product’ for customers first stepping onto the energy staircase. They remain especially popular in rural areas, with more than 5 in every 6 users living in villages or the countryside.

  • Solar Home Systems

    Just like lanterns, solar home systems (SHS) are transforming lives. In our recent Why Off-Grid Energy Matters 2024 report, 94% of users report improved quality of life through improved lighting, extended device usage, and increased productivity.

  • Mini-Grid

    Mini-grids stand out as the most inclusive business model from an income and location perspective. Their ability to reach customers living in poverty is unmatched.

  • Appliances

    These are devices such as refrigerators, fans, solar water pumps, or televisions that can be powered by a standalone solar home system or mini-grid connection.

  • Clean Cooking

    Overall, one of the most tangible – and perhaps priceless – impacts of clean cooking is time savings. 4 out of 5 cookstove users say that their cooking time has reduced with their new stove.

  • (E-) Mobility

    Our early headline is that e-mobility is an extremely inclusive sub-sector and supports income generation. 92% of customers live in poverty, with women making up 38% of e-mobility users.

  • Ecosystem Service Providers

    Not all companies that are essential to the off-grid market work directly with customers. Smart metering, financing, manufacturing, and platform services play a crucial role in the wider energy ecosystem. We use a slightly different approach for measuring impact and value here.

“Efficient work with relevant, reliable and accurate outcomes in a beautifully designed report.”

Esther Altorfer, CSO
Sistema.bio

“The 60dB team was friendly and flexible in working with us despite the initial challenges we encountered in the survey. The report was comprehensive and offered us a lot of insights about our work and impact.”

Florence Tesha, Managing Director
Tema General Traders

“We are more aware of the situation of our customers, providing the necessary insight to improve our product and service delivery.”

Rune Gunnar Dige, Founder & CEO
RDG Collective

“Before working with 60 Decibels I had no idea about the feeling of our customers about our quality services. With this partnership we found that some customers were not happy, and we’re correcting the issues now.”

Sergio Jaoa, CEO
Uranus Solar

Featured insights

Off-Grid Energy Appliance Impacts Over Time

This longitudinal study explores how customers’ relationship with their off-grid appliances changes over time. We captured critical indicators through phone interviews with over 4000 off-grid TV, solar water pump, and refrigerator customers to track product quality, durability, satisfaction, impact, and uptake.
Read more

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