BURN Manufacturing: Fueling Sustainability through Product Innovation and Carbon Financing in Africa
| Case Code: LDEN224 Case Length: 18 Pages Period: 2011-2024 Pub Date: 2024 Teaching Note: Available |
Price: Rs.400 Organization : BURN Manufacturing Industry :Home Appliances & Consumer Products Countries : Kenya Themes: Social Entrepreneurship, Sustainable Innovation, Channel Strategy & Development,Corporate Social Marketing |
Abstract Case Intro 1 Case Intro 2 Excerpts
Excerpts
Product Innovaton
BURN was founded in 2011 with the aim of making a positive impact on people’s lives as well as on the environment by revolutionizing the cookstove sector. Since commencing manufacturing operations in 2013, it had been designing, manufacturing, and distributing Africa’s best-selling, most durable and economical clean cookstoves. BURN was one of the only carbon-offset project developers which covered the full carbon value chain, including project design, monitoring, and credit issuance. “The goal of the company is to save lives and forests on the continent by revolutionising the global cookstove sector. There’s a whole range of things that complement our clean cookstoves, from green economic development to female empowerment and poverty reduction, because people spend so much money on fuel,” said Scott..
Establishing A Full Carbon Value Chain
In the first decade of operations (2012-2022) BURN was able to establish that fuel efficient cookstoves could have transformative social, financial, and environmental impacts. Scott was also recognized as a global leader in cookstove commercialization. BURN generated revenue from the production and sale of cookstoves and stove accessories, as well as through stove distribution fees..
Gender-Inclusive Approach to Increase Market Penetration
BURN collaborated with microfinance institutions, recognizing that the upfront cost was a significant barrier for many women when purchasing an improved cookstove. To address this challenge, BURN partnered with credit cooperative societies to offer financing options to its customers. The company provided three financing solutions — chama credit, BURN credit, and third-party mobile credit — to assist women from low-income households in acquiring cookstoves..
Financing Innovation
Carbon finance, as a results-based financing (RBF) mechanism, tied payments to the actual reduction of CO2 emissions. After the delivery and verification of the stove's climate impact, carbon finance ensured a reliable revenue stream for clean cookstove manufacturers. This guaranteed income allowed manufacturers to scale up production, making the significant upfront investments required for establishing production facilities and distribution networks more feasible..
Burn’s Impact
BURN’s fuel-efficient cookstoves, designed and manufactured in Kenya, had a positive impact on the environment as well as the socio-economic condition of the people. Through the fuel efficient cookstoves, BURN impacted more than 20 million lives. By the end of 2023, BURN had sold more than 4 million cookstoves and more than 800,000 households had benefitted from its fuel efficient cookstoves in East Africa..
Awards
BURN won several international accolades for its cutting-edge innovation, including Bloomberg’s New Energy Finance Award, the Global Leap Awards, and the Ashden International award The company has also received support from Yunus Social Business, which conducted an impact performance study of BURN’s Kuniokoa wood stove..
The Road Ahead
BURN claimed that it reinvested its profits to achieve sustainability, expand its business, and fulfil its mission. The company aimed to increase the production capacity of its existing facility in Kenya from 250,000 to 1 million cookstoves per month between 2023 and 2026. It also had plans to set up production facilities in other countries in sub-Saharan Africa..
Exhibits
Exhibit I:
BURN’s Cooking Appliances
Exhibit II: BURN’s Ongoing Projects
Exhibit III: A Note on Distributors of BURN’s Product in Kenya
Exhibit IV:
Awards Conferred on BURN
Exhibit V: Clean Cooking Operation and Financing
Exhibit VI: BURN’s Competitors
Buy this case study (Please select any one of the payment options)
| Price: Rs.400 |
Price: Rs.400 | PayPal (9 USD) |
