Our Subsidiaries

Over the years, we have learnt that some of our interventions are best deployed and operated on market based approaches for sustainability. The adoption of profit oriented enterprises was also birthed in response to growing demand for renewable and clean energy technologies and services following our behavioural switch mass sensitization activities.

CEM Alternatives Ltd

Community Energy Malawi (CEM) Alternatives Ltd, is a subsidiary of Community Energy Malawi with private shareholding. It is a company focusing on clean cooking technologies including LPG.

CEM Alternatives Ltd, is partly owned by Registered Trustees of Community Energy Malawi (CEM) (20% shares), 15% reserved for staff members and the rest (65%) owned by private investors who have seen its potential and developed the business idea.  It was set up building on CEM’s UNDP funded Kuphika Moganizila Chilengedwe Project that has distributed 1,700 LPG packages in Lilongwe and Zomba Cities. The demand for refill services and the urge to sustain the gains of introducing LPG to 1,7000 households necessitated establishment of CEM Alternatives Ltd. Evidence on low adoption of LPG demonstrates that people often get back to unclean sources like unsustainable charcoal due to long distances to refill points or lack of refill points closer to them. Fearing that the 1,700 can lapse from LPG and get back to charcoal, CEM Alternatives Ltd responded with this outlet that opens at 6am and closes at 9pm, opens during weekends and holidays from 1am to 2pm and also provides delivery services. It is an Afrox Ltd approved gas distributor with outlets in Zomba, Lilongwe and near term plans to expand to Mzuzu and other urban areas.

CEM Mini-grids Ltd

Community Energy Malawi (CEM) Mini-grids Ltd, is a special vehicle created to attract equity and debt financing as well as to deploy and operate mini-grids sustainably. Our Sitolo 80kW Solar MInigrid pilot attracted interests from over 100 communities in Malawi and Zambia. We support from The Pebble Trust, we managed to visit the communities and signed exclusive project development agreements with them. Realising that the landscape for minigrids financing has changed and also building on our experience in operating the Sitolo Solar Mingrid, this SPV was created to ensure that minigrids are deployed in the 54 villages in Malawi and Zambia and enable an estimated 210,000 people access clean renewable electricity

CEM Trading Ltd

The demand for quality renewable energy technologies’ supply and installation following our mass sensitization activities on energy exacerbated by unreliable grid supply over the years, gave rise to CEM Trading Ltd. It is a MERA licensed installer, supplier of RETs and also offers consultancies.

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