October 06, 2025. By Abha Rustagi
At Greenway, we believe that a well-regulated domestic carbon market would be incredibly transformative, said Ankit Mathur, Co-founder and CEO, Greenway Grameen, in an interview with Abha Rustagi, Associate Editor, Energetica India.
Que: What gap did you identify in the rural energy access space that led to the formation of Greenway? How has the company evolved in terms of product portfolio and geographic reach?
Ans: Before starting Greenway, the biggest gap I noticed was the lack of safe, affordable, and efficient cooking solutions in rural households. Millions of families still used traditional cooking methods that were inefficient, consumed a lot of fuel, and were harmful to their health. The idea was to bridge this gap with a solution that was accessible to rural communities and environmentally sustainable. Over time, we expanded our product line to include multiple stove variants.
Greenway initially began in a handful of districts in India and has now reached thousands of villages across multiple Indian states, even expanding its footprint in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. The journey has always been about making clean energy practical and a realistic choice for rural India.
Que: Greenway sells carbon credits through SDG 13 Ventures to offset cost subsidies. How does this model ensure affordability for rural users while maintaining financial and operational sustainability?
Ans: The carbon credit model has been an effective method for us. The Greenway stove reduces emissions, channeling this into carbon credits, which unlocks a new revenue stream. This is what helps us keep the upfront cost low for rural families. Additionally, it allows us to keep investing in distribution, after-sales support, maintenance and innovation. SDG13 Ventures enables us to keep the carbon credit model scalable and transparent, and the climate benefits of our stoves translate into affordability for our users. This balance between sustainability and impact allows us to grow without entirely depending on subsidies and grants.
Que: What strategies are used to educate households about the benefits of clean cooking practices?
Ans: Our teams conduct product demonstrations in villages and show how Greenway stoves use lesser fuel than their traditional stoves, and emit much lesser smoke. In doing so, our teams raise awareness about the harms of traditional cooking methods our teams also work with NGOs, women’s collectives, and local self-help groups in a trusted community-driven way. Most importantly, we position the Greenway stoves as a lifestyle upgrade, over and above its affordability, which makes all the difference.
Que: Are there any new products or innovations currently in development?
Ans: We’re always working to innovate products that potentially improve quality of life for households using them. Given our experience in energy access, our current R&D initiatives are geared to expand from clean cooking energy access to distributed renewable energy access. We’re actively innovating portable energy storage and inverters that could provide reliable electricity at the tail end of the grid. We are also expanding our portfolio from energy access to access to clean water. We are in the final stages of testing an electric table top water purifier, specially designed for households that don’t have reliable running water supply or piped water supply.
Que: How would a well-regulated domestic carbon market in India transform Greenway’s operations?
Ans: At Greenway, we believe that a well-regulated domestic carbon market would be incredibly transformative, allowing us to create a larger pool of resources to increase access to clean energy technologies. We would also be able to monetise environmental benefits more efficiently, making our solutions more accessible to lower-income households across the country. A regulated market would also provide validation, trading mechanisms, standardised reporting, and foster investor confidence. A strong domestic carbon ecosystem would strengthen financial stability, amplify our impact, and help scale clean cooking solutions faster across India.
Que: What do you need most from the ecosystem – policy support, capital, technology, talent?
Ans: Each of these is important, but enabling policy is the foundation. Policy frameworks that encourage clean cooking adoption and carbon markets could really accelerate scale. Capital is equally important to fund growth, R&D, and distribution networks. Access to advanced technology helps us improve usability, monitoring, and efficiency while skilled talent holds everything together. It’s the combination of all of the factors that truly makes growth possible. For Greenway, an ecosystem that supports business growth while aligning incentives with social and environmental outcomes would be essential.
