Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Uganda Travels -- September

This September CSEP secured site control of two properties in Uganda.

CSEP-Kasese/Kaberole
The first is located in western Uganda, straddling the Kasese and Kaberole district borders.  More specifically, this property sits just north of the town of Fort Portal.

The second property is located in northwest Uganda in the Obongi District / Yumbe.

CSEP is pleased to be a partner with our Ugandan business associate, Mr. Mbuga Nassour.

We met in Fort Portal with a stellar team of geologists from the Ugandan Department of Geological Survey and Mines.  Traveling on motorcycle to the hilly project location, we sampled the hot springs on site and hiked the mountainous but geothermally rich area.  Following results of these surface examinations, we plan to begin phase one development which entails subsurface drilling and taking of core samples to confirm the makeup of these potential wells.  We will have equipment on the ground once we finalize our project financing.

M. Haarer and M. Nassour
We are excited at the opportunity to provide power to the Ugandan Transmission Authority.  We have secured off take commitments as well as transmission access.  Because only 13 percent of Ugandans have access to electricity, these kinds of projects are needed desperately.

Our view of Uganda is very positive.  I would recommend to anyone considering traveling to Uganda that they place this destination on their itinerary.  While there is great poverty and an unacceptable mortality rate, the people of this great country are -- without exception -- among the most welcoming and warm anywhere.

We greatly appreciate the professionalism of key ministry officials with whom we are dealing, and their commitment to bringing power to the people.

That is, electricity....

Finally, we were struck by the beauty of the kids. They greeted everywhere with smiles, often yelling: "Hello.  How are You?  I am fine!" 

They enjoyed the exchange greatly.  So did we.

These two sisters emerged on a hill.  When I showed them their picture they could not resist a smile...

More soon.

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Welcome to CleanSource Energy Partners!

Since February 2012, CleanSource Energy Partners (CSEP) has attained incredible success in early stage project development.   With recent government surveys confirming abundant geothermal resources, and letters of intent from off-take parties, we are moving quickly to the next critical phase of project development.

Opportunities include hundreds of megawatts of geothermal energy development.  However, our expertise in creating microgrid, or stand alone utilities that can provide community self sufficiency, is also under discussion.  CSEP's Managing Director Terry Mohn knows a thing or two about this subject: as CEO of General Microgrids, Terry is a global expert on development of self contained, sustainable utility systems and serves as Chairman of the United Nations Foundation MicroGrid Work Group (58 nation state participation).
 
At CSEP we are far enough advanced on overseas projects that we've begun to entertain investor interest in developing these project.  Each investor has an opportunity to join with CSEP in bringing critically needed power to ever-expanding East African urban and rural communities.

Our success in such a short amount of time is owed to the professional experience of our management team -- representing decades of utility and energy / project development experience.  This in addition to our team in places like Kenya and Uganda. 

[Both Mark and Terry served in different capacities for many years at Sempra Energy.  Mark also serves as General Microgrid's Chief Operating Officer.]

In the U.S., we are working in partnership with project developers to deliver hundreds of megawatts of geothermal power to accessible and available transmission systems, utilizing low-temperature geothermal technologies.  We look forward to announcing that project soon, and it's potential to provide needed renewable energy to regional utilities. 

In addition to the value our team brings in developing geothermal-based power projects, and applying microgrid principles where there is a need and a desire by the host community, CSEP includes experts in sustainable building design.  Our fundamental premise is that true sustainability begins "from the ground up".  In addition to generating power using low temperature geothermal power, CSEP brings expertise in the use of ground source heat pump (GSHP) systems for heating and cooling buildings.

GSHP systems are considered by the U.S. Department of Energy as "the most efficient technology available" today.  For more information on GSHP, including project financing, feel free to give us a call.



We look forward to doing great things for those who are truly in need of clean, reliable power.  Our sweet spot is in those areas where there is a need for community based power with favorable geothermal resource availability.  As we are always interested in developing relationships with people and companies that share our vision, we welcome hearing from you.

Check back soon for updates on our progress!