Enterprise Development
Businesses require varying levels of support to move from the initial development concept stage through to a bankable stage when a project can confidently be presented to investors. E+Co provides enterprise development services to assist the entrepreneur to develop or refine the proposed business approach and to ensure the right issues are being addressed from the human, financial and technical capacity points of view. While E+Co has in-house capacity to provide a large part of this support, it also will consider the provision of an early stage loan to allow sponsors to engage specific technical, legal or financial advice necessary to move the project forward. Where appropriate, E+Co provides significant assistance in identifying co-financiers and/or later stage funders and works with the sponsor in preparing and presenting submissions to these organizations.

Direct Investment
E+Co provides early stage investment ($25,000 - $250,000) in the form of debt or equity to enable an entrepreneur to further develop its approach or begin implementation or construction of a project. These investments typically reflect near market terms and conditions, with the exception that E+Co will tolerate a relatively high level of risk without seeking classic venture capital returns. This philosophy is built on the belief that, but for E+Co's intervention on these terms, many essentially sustainable ventures will never advance. Regrettably, the smaller scale of many renewable energy projects, the misconceptions that still linger on technology risk, and the perceived risks of working in rural areas of developing countries, means many traditional investors are still waiting for the market to be proven to their satisfaction.