Pioneering research and skills
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
Light work Over 1.6 billion people – one fifth of the world’s population – lack access to electricity via a grid, and pay high prices for fuels such as kerosene to serve their basic needs. Eight19 Limited, a solar energy company formed to commercialise EPSRC-sponsored research at the University of Cambridge, has developed a pay-as-you-go personal solar electricity system for the developing world. The IndiGo system uses high-performance, low-cost plastic solar cells capable of generating solar electricity for off-grid applications, allowing users to light their homes and recharge mobile phones as a service, paid for using scratchcards.
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