What is Dowgo, the renewable energy funding platform?

Dowgo is a funding platform for renewable energy projects, powered by blockchain technology. Through asset tokenization, investors can own a portion of a bond on wind or solar parks, allowing for transparent and liquid exposure to green energy assets. Here's an overview of Dowgo, an innovative application to invest in the energy transition.

What is Dowgo?

Dowgo is a French startup launched at the beginning of 2022 by a team consisting of former members of HSBC and Credit Agricole banks and engineers who worked for renowned companies in the Web3 world such as Consensys (MetaMask) and Moonbeam.

At the crossroads of two rapidly expanding sectors, Dowgo introduces a new paradigm in the world of renewable energy investment. Thanks to technological advances enabled by blockchain, this platform offers unprecedented opportunities for investors to expose themselves to the green energy market.

Currently, the renewable energy market faces several challenges. First, it is relatively closed and reserved for institutional investors. One can invest through crowdfunding platforms, but the fees are about 10% of the amount raised by the projects. Furthermore, it is illiquid since the invested amounts are locked for periods between 2 and 10 years. For project sponsors, it is therefore complicated to find the necessary funding to create a wind or solar park.

Dowgo's ambition is to democratize investment in the renewable energy market by opening it to a broader range of investors. This is made possible by tokenization, a concept that aims to represent any real-world asset on the blockchain in the form of a token, making it easily accessible and transfereable.

Thus, Dowgo offers green bond issuances for wind and solar projects. Investors have the opportunity to purchase tokens that yield a stable return from green energy production, with principal repayment at maturity.

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How Dowgo Supports Renewable Energy Financing?

Initial Setup:

Industrial and renewable energy producers looking to refinance their current and future energy parks start by completing their Know Your Business (KYB) process on Dowgo’s issuer interface. This step qualifies them to receive a European bank account with its own IBAN, managed through Dowgo's portal via Monerium's API. Importantly, this account is non-custodial, owned by the issuer who alone can authorize transactions.

Refinancing Projects:

When an issuer decides to refinance a project, they must deposit their revenue into this new IBAN. This transparency allows investors to accurately track the financial performance of the asset. Dowgo facilitates the automation of quarterly interest payments from this account. Once the project generates enough revenue from energy production, the issuer can initiate a transaction to repay the principal. Upon approval, all creditors or token holders are repaid their initial investment.

Post-Repayment Ownership and Transition:

After the principal repayment, the issuer gains full ownership of the asset. They may then switch the operations from the IBAN provided by Dowgo to their regular bank account. Throughout the bond’s term, it is essential that the renewable energy project secures a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) to ensure stable revenue and financial viability.

Why take an interest in Dowgo?

Renewable Energy: A Rapidly Expanding Market

The challenges of climate change are crucial for the planet and involve a transition to green, non-polluting energies. Massive investments are expected to achieve Europe's goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.

Globally, the renewable energy market is expected to reach 2 trillion euros in annual investments by 2030. The European market, where Dowgo operates, accounts for about 20% of this global total, which equals 400 billion euros. Specifically considering renewable energy projects under 10 million euros, which represent 30% of the market, Dowgo's target market is estimated at 120 billion euros per year.

Real-World Asset Tokenization

As the cryptocurrency industry becomes institutionalized and professionalized, a financial revolution is on the horizon: the tokenization of real-world assets. As explained earlier, this process enables any asset to exist on the blockchain.

The benefits of this new concept adapted to renewable energy investment are numerous:

• Accessibility: Lower entry cost for investors. While the minimum investment in green energy production sites is around 100,000 euros, it will now be reduced to 1 euro and open to all profiles.

• Transparency: The blockchain is an open and transparent world, allowing easy tracking of producer's payments.

• Liquidity: With the secondary market, it is possible to exchange a token on Dowgo without constraints, allowing investors to sell their positions or new entrants to expose themselves after the fundraising.

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Conclusion

Dowgo presents itself as a major innovation in the field of renewable energy investment, combining blockchain technology and tokenization to address issues of accessibility and liquidity.

By enabling investors to acquire green bonds in the form of tokens for wind or solar projects, Dowgo democratizes access to a market previously reserved for major institutional players.

In a context where the renewable energy market is booming and is especially crucial for the future of the climate, Dowgo offers a unique and simplified opportunity to engage in the fight against climate change.