420
420
PV capacity (kWp)
18,000+
18,000+
direct and indirect users
33
33
jobs created in
last-mile rural communities
57%
57%
increase in users'
agricultural income in 1 year
1,200
1,200
tonnes CO2eq saved
Productive Power for Smallholder Farmers
This award recognises the exceptional work helping drive the country forward in its net-zero goals.
Oorja was selected among the top 5 energy startups in the world! It was an honour for our work in rural India to be highlighted by dena, the German energy agency.
This award recognises Oorja's innovation that bridges the gap between the agriculture and energy access sectors.
New World Bank report features Oorja among leading pay-per-use service companies
This report aims to survey the outlook for the off-grid solar market and interventions needed for the sector to achieve its full potential impact.
Oorja among UN Best Small Business winners
Selected from nearly 2,000 applications from 135 countries, the 50 winners all showcase inspiring, diverse, and impactful solutions in improving access to healthy, sustainable food. They will also share US$100,000 in cash prizes. Read more about the hidden heroes of our food systems here.
https://globalgoodfund.org/entrepreneurs/
The 12-month Fellowship comes with executive mentorship, leadership coaching and $10,000 grant capital.
About us
Oorja is a Farming as a Service company working at the intersection between agriculture and clean energy. We provide irrigation, milling and cooling services to smallholder farmers on a pay-per-use basis.
Hit play to see what we do below! ▶️
We finance and install decentralised solar energy systems at the farm level. There is no upfront cost charged to end-users.
We operate and maintain these solar systems for their full lifetime.We sell reliable and affordable farming services powered by solar energy to farmers. Our business model is
pay-per-use. This means users pay according to the amount of irrigation water pumped, produce milled or stored.Our farming services
❄️ Cooling as a service.
Available at the farm or market gate on a per-crate-per-day basis.
How we work
Finance
We raise finance for the company to invest in community-scale agri infrastructure. This is typically blended capital.
Site identification
We identify or receive referrals for potential project sites where smallholder farmers rely on diesel power for their energy needs.
Demand assessment
Our ground team conducts farmer consultation to assess demand for our services. We form groups of interested farmers and may collect membership fees from them.
Installation
We procure equipment from reputed domestic suppliers and complete civil works, installation testing and commissioning of solar systems.
Service delivery
We hire an Operator from the local community and train them to deliver irrigation, milling or cooling services and maintain a sales register.
Paying-per-use
Customers pay the Operator based on their consumption at affordable tariffs. For example, irrigation is paid per litre based on a flowmeter.
Ops and maintenance
Our ground team conducts regular maintenance and repairs, ensuring services are hassle-free and keeping our customers happy.
Monitoring
We monitor project performance and collect annual impact data. This helps us to assess the economic, social and environmental benefits.
Impact
We are aligned to 5 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Access to affordable, reliable energy is fundamental to economic activity and poverty alleviation. It enables people to use appliances and machines that help them to seek better livelihoods, increase their food security, access quality education, breathe cleaner air and live in a cleaner environment, and lead lives of greater dignity and less hard labour. Oorja's services are designed to transform the lives of low-income communities, notably small and marginal farmers, low-income households and women farmers, by significantly increasing income when linked to productive activities at their farm. Displacing diesel - a fossil fuel - in favour of solar energy also delivers significant carbon emissions savings.
