Project Gaia
Project Gaia is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that promotes clean ethanol and methanol cookstoves (CleanCook stove and ethanol microdistilleries) for household cooking in developing markets, serving refugee populations through UNHCR and urban/rural households in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Haiti, India, and other countries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1995
- HeadquartersGettysburg, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Project Gaia does
Project Gaia, Inc. is a US-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1995 and headquartered in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, that promotes clean, alcohol-fueled (ethanol and methanol) cookstoves for household cooking in developing markets. Its core product is the CleanCook stove — a non-pressurized, unspillable canister-based ethanol cookstove manufactured by CleanCook Sweden AB (formerly Dometic's alcohol fuel stove division) and endorsed by Project Gaia — paired with ethanol fuel sold in pre-filled, returnable canisters and supported by small-scale ethanol microdistilleries (EMDs) capable of converting molasses, sugarcane juice, fruit waste, and other feedstocks into fuel-grade ethanol at capacities ranging from 120 liters/day to 1,000 liters/day.
The organization runs a dual-track business model. On the humanitarian side, it has been the official implementing partner of UNHCR since 2005, administering the Safe and Clean Household Energy Program across refugee camps in Ethiopia (with 100% family coverage in Jijiga's Awberre, Kebribeyah, and Sheder camps) and Kenya, distributing more than 7,000 stoves and over three million liters of ethanol to date, funded by grants from ADM Cares, the US EPA, the World Bank, Nordic Climate Facility, Shell SNEPCo, and the Ethiopian Federal EPA. On the commercial side, its Nigerian affiliate Project Gaia Prospects Limited (PGPL) is executing a 2,500-stove scale-up with Ardova Plc (formerly Forte Oil, with 450 retail outlets nationwide) in Lagos, with approximately 70,000 liters of fuel distributed monthly through Phase 1, while its Ethiopian sister organization Gaia Association operates community-owned microdistilleries, including one run by the Former Women Fuelwood Carriers Association (FWFCA) cooperative in Addis Ababa.
Project Gaia operates in 8+ countries (Ethiopia, Nigeria, Haiti, Kenya, Mozambique, Madagascar, Brazil, India) and has received recognition including the 2008 Ashden Award, the 2010 Sustainable Biofuels Award for Adoption, and the 2012 World Bioenergy Award. Pricing is not publicly disclosed for commercial stove/fuel sales; refugee programs provide stoves and fuel free of charge through donor funding. The organization is founder-led (Executive Director Harry Stokes, Co-founder) with 11–50 employees across US, Ethiopia, and Nigeria operations.
Project Gaia firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Project Gaia
- Legal name
- Project Gaia, Inc.
- Website
- https://projectgaia.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1995
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Project Gaia is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that promotes clean ethanol and methanol cookstoves (CleanCook stove and ethanol microdistilleries) for household cooking in developing markets, serving refugee populations through UNHCR and urban/rural households in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Haiti, India, and other countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Project Gaia industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Clean Cookstoves
- NAICS
- Ethyl Alcohol Manufacturing (325193)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Grain & Sugar-Based Ethanol Production (EUAAAHAA)
Keywords
Where Project Gaia is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Gettysburg
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Project Gaia business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Commercial Stove and Fuel Sales: Project Gaia's Nigerian operations sell CleanCook ethanol stoves and pre-filled ethanol fuel canisters through Ardova's 450 retail outlets. Phase one involves 2,500 stoves with approximately 70,000 liters of fuel distributed monthly. Stoves are sold commercially and fuel is available on a commercial basis. The model aims to build a self-sustaining market for ethanol cooking fuel.
- Humanitarian Donations and Grants: As a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Project Gaia raises funds from foundations, governments, and individuals to distribute stoves and fuel free of charge to refugee populations. Funding comes from ADM Cares, US EPA, World Bank, Nordic Climate Facility, Shell SNEPCo, Ethiopian Federal EPA, and others. UNHCR has been an implementing partner since 2005.
- Local Ethanol Production and Sales: Community-owned microdistilleries (operated by women's cooperatives like FWFCA in Addis Ababa) produce ethanol for household cooking fuel, sold to members and surrounding communities. This creates local livelihoods and energy independence. Ethiopia produces approximately 30 million liters of ethanol annually with government support for expansion.
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
Project Gaia product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Project Gaia promotes clean, safe, efficient cookstoves powered by alcohol fuels (ethanol and methanol) for household cooking in developing countries. The organization implements humanitarian programs (distributing stoves and fuel free of charge to refugee populations via UNHCR) and commercial market development (selling CleanCook stoves and pre-filled ethanol fuel canisters through retail partners such as Ardova in Nigeria). Project Gaia also supports the deployment of community-owned ethanol microdistilleries that convert agricultural waste (molasses, sugarcane juice, fruit waste) into cooking fuel.
Product overview
Project Gaia promotes clean, safe, efficient cookstoves powered by alcohol fuels (ethanol and methanol). The product portfolio centers on the CleanCook Stove (manufactured by CLEANCOOK Sweden AB) as the core cooking appliance, paired with ethanol fuel sold in returnable canisters. The company also offers ethanol microdistilleries (EMDs) for small-scale local fuel production, enabling communities to produce their own cooking fuel from agricultural waste products. Complementary products include methanol cookstoves (for the India market) and ethanol-powered lanterns. The integrated solution combines stoves, fuel supply chains, and production equipment to address energy poverty in developing regions.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- CleanCook Stove An alcohol-fueled cookstove using ethanol or methanol fuel in a non-pressurized, unspillable canister system, available in single and double burner configurations. Manufactured by CleanCook Sweden AB and endorsed by Project Gaia for household cooking in developing countries.
- Ethanol Fuel Clean-burning ethanol fuel sold in pre-filled, returnable canisters for use with CleanCook stoves. One canister holds enough fuel for one to two days of cooking for a family of five. Available through retail outlets and distributed free of charge in refugee camps.
- Ethanol Microdistillery (EMD) Small-scale ethanol production equipment that converts sugar, starch, and waste feedstocks (molasses, sugarcane juice, fruit waste, coffee husks) into bioethanol fuel. Available in capacities from 120-150 liters per day to 1,000 liters per day. Designed for community-based ownership and operation by cooperatives.
- Methanol Cookstoves Cookstoves powered by methanol fuel, developed for India's Methanol Economy initiative to transition from fossil fuels, wood, and low-grade solid fuels to clean-burning, low-carbon liquid fuel.
- BriteLyt Lantern Ethanol-powered lantern for household lighting, complementary to ethanol cookstoves and using the same fuel supply chain for combined cooking and lighting energy needs.
Quantifiable outcome
- 72.9% reduction in average PM2.5 levels in Addis Ababa households switching from kerosene/charcoal to ethanol
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Project Gaia
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Project Gaia technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Project Gaia partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
18 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.
- Ardova Plc (formerly Forte Oil PLC)coreArdova (formerly Forte Oil) is a Nigerian energy company with over 450 retail outlets covering all 36 states of Nigeria. Ardova and PGPL are implementing a 2,500-ethanol-stove commercial scale-up. Ethanol stove fuel is available at selected Ardova retail locations in Lagos. Ardova will import stove parts from the CleanCook factory in Durban and assemble them in Lagos. The formal business launch occurred in early 2020.
- UNIKEM Industries, Ltd.coreUNIKEM is Nigeria's largest producer and importer of ethanol, supplying fuel to the PGPL-Ardova stove business. UNIKEM works with ADM to bulk-ship ethanol to Nigeria and handled logistics for the ADM donation of ethanol to Project Gaia. The collaboration with UNIKEM is described as strategic as the new stove market grows and demand for ethanol fuel increases.
- Methanol InstituteminorThe Methanol Institute supports India's Methanol Economy initiative and the methanol cookstove program in Assam, working with Project Gaia, the Government of Assam, and NITI AAYOG to assess methanol cookstove use and acceptance for a national clean cooking plan.
- Clean Cooking MadagascarminorClean Cooking Madagascar issued a request for proposals for an ethanol pilot micro distillery sized from 2,000 to 5,000 liters/day as part of a national program to scale up 100,000 ethanol stoves over five years.
- Relief, Reconstruction, and Development Organization (RRDO)minorRRDO and Project Gaia, in partnership with UNHCR, launched a pilot study of ethanol-fueled CLEANCOOK stoves in Dadaab refugee camp, Garissa County, Kenya. CLEANCOOK Sweden AB donated 100 double burner stoves for the pilot.
- CleanCook Sweden ABcoreCleanCook Sweden AB, a Swedish company, manufactures the CleanCook ethanol stove (formerly part of Dometic Group's alcohol fuel stove business). The stoves are sold globally in developing world markets and endorsed by Project Gaia. CleanCook donated 100 double burner stoves for the Dadaab refugee camp pilot. The stoves feature non-pressurized unspillable fuel canisters.
- Novogaz (Haiti)coreNovogaz is a Haitian company serving as the local partner on the ground for the dissemination of clean ethanol stoves and fuel in Haiti. Working with Project Gaia, Novogaz helps commercialize the stove and fuel, revitalize local agriculture, diversify crops, and build industry.
- Nigerian National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA)coreA Nigerian government agency launched a microdistillery and stoves project to provide sustainable ethanol fuel for household cooking, lighting, and small-scale power generation, bringing together an initial 1,000 CleanCook ethanol stoves.
- Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI)coreGaia Association and SEI launched the 'Fuel from Waste' project in November 2011 to demonstrate feasibility of locally produced ethanol for household cooking in Addis Ababa. SEI manages the project, conducts socioeconomic impact analysis, and coordinates the feasibility study. SEI researchers have published briefs identifying ethanol as a viable energy alternative in Ethiopia.
- Dometic ABcoreDometic AB developed the CleanCook stove originally for the leisure market. In February 2015, CleanCook Sweden AB acquired Dometic's alcohol fuel stove business division. Stoves were also manufactured locally in Ethiopia and Haiti.
- International Rescue Committee (IRC)minorProject Gaia and the International Rescue Committee joined with local partners in Haiti to develop ethanol stoves and fuel both as an emergency intervention and as a longer-term development project.
- Ethiopian Federal Environmental Protection Authority (EPA)coreGaia Association received a grant from the Ethiopian Federal EPA to source and install three microdistilleries in rural Ethiopian communities in the Amhara, Afar, and Oromia/Addis Ababa regions. The agreement was signed December 20, 2011. The EPA also undertook the Environmental Impact Assessment for the 'Fuel from Waste' project.
- Global Alliance for Clean CookstovescoreLaunched by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the Clinton Global Initiative Annual 2010 Meeting. Project Gaia is the only organization actively promoting cookstoves and alcohol fuel and serves as a Global Alliance Implementing Partner, leading liquid fuels issues in the Technology and Fuels Working Group.
- International Institute for Ecological Agriculture (IIEA)minorIIEA, in collaboration with Project Gaia, hosted a seminar on Appropriate-scale Alcohol Fuel Production in Atlanta, Georgia. The 3.5-day seminar focused on small-scale alcohol fuel production and global solutions for cooking, refrigeration, electricity and transport.
- PANGEA (Partners for Euro-African Green Energy)corePANGEA is a nonprofit membership organization based in Brussels, Belgium, promoting sustainable African bioenergy production, investment, and policy development. Project Gaia is a member of PANGEA. Together they held events at EU Sustainable Energy Week in the European Parliament.
- UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees)flagshipGaia became an official implementing partner of UNHCR in 2005 and administers the organization's Safe and Clean Household Energy Program. Gaia covers 100% of families in Eastern Ethiopia's Jijiga camps (Awberre, Kebribeyah, and Sheder) with clean stoves and fuel. The humanitarian program has distributed more than 7,000 clean cookstoves and over three million liters of ethanol. The partnership was expanded in 2016 to test and evaluate different cookstove technologies in Melkadida camp.
- Gaia Association (Ethiopia)flagshipGaia Association is the Ethiopian sister organization, founded as a nonprofit in 2005, that carries on work with ethanol cookstoves in Ethiopia. It manages microdistillery projects, refugee camp programs, commercial pilots, and policy work with the Ethiopian government. Project Gaia, Inc. and Gaia Association have been working together for over a decade.
- Project Gaia Prospects Limited (PGPL)flagshipPGPL is Project Gaia's Nigerian affiliate, a Nigerian company through which Project Gaia works in Nigeria. PGPL and Ardova are implementing the 2,500-ethanol-stove commercial scale-up in Lagos. Joe Obueh serves as Executive Director of PGPL.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Project Gaia competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- CleanCook Sweden AB: Swedish manufacturer of the CleanCook alcohol fuel stove that Project Gaia promotes. CleanCook is the OEM partner supplying stoves for both humanitarian distribution and commercial scale-up, making it the most directly comparable hardware peer.
- BURN Manufacturing: Kenya-based clean cookstove manufacturer and distributor with a similar mission of replacing biomass cooking fuels in East Africa. BURN competes in the same household energy access space with biomass and improved stoves, comparable end-user base, and East Africa geographic overlap.
- Envirofit International: US-based social enterprise designing, manufacturing, and distributing clean cookstoves across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Envirofit addresses the same indoor air pollution and energy poverty problems with biomass and fuel-efficient stoves, comparable distribution model, and global developing-country focus.
- EcoZoom: Clean cookstove company selling biomass and fuel-efficient stoves in developing markets across Africa, Latin America, and Asia. EcoZoom competes for the same household cooking wallet with a similar social-impact distribution model.
- Sistema.bio: Mexico/Kenya-based social enterprise providing biogas digesters that produce clean cooking gas and biofertilizer for smallholder farmers. Sistema.bio targets the same rural cooking energy market as Project Gaia's microdistillery model but uses biogas rather than ethanol as the fuel pathway.
- BioLite: US-based clean energy company producing biomass cookstoves with thermoelectric generation, plus solar lighting products for off-grid households. BioLite targets the same energy access and clean cooking customers in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia with a hardware-and-fuel integrated model.
Broad incumbents
- d.light (formerly Greenlight Planet): Global pay-as-you-go solar energy company serving off-grid households with lighting, phone charging, and increasingly cooking-adjacent appliances. While not a direct alcohol-fuel competitor, d.light competes for the same household energy wallet and partners with similar humanitarian and last-mile distribution networks.
Emerging players
- ATEC* International: Cambodia-headquartered biogas and clean cooking company deploying low-cost biodigesters and cookstoves across South and Southeast Asia. ATEC overlaps with Project Gaia's microdistillery concept by producing distributed clean cooking fuel from agricultural waste for rural communities.
Others
- POET: One of the world's largest grain ethanol producers and a Project Gaia partner that donated ethanol to catalyze the Haiti market. POET sits upstream as an ethanol feedstock supplier and strategic partner rather than a direct cooking-fuel competitor.
- Shell Foundation: UK-based charity funded by Shell that backs clean cooking and energy access enterprises, including via Shell SNEPCo's partnership with Project Gaia. Shell Foundation operates as a funder/incubator in the clean cooking ecosystem rather than a direct stove or fuel competitor.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Project Gaia social profiles
Digital presenceProject Gaia financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Project Gaia leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Project Gaia subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Project Gaia funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Project Gaia M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Project Gaia
What does Project Gaia do?
Project Gaia promotes clean, safe, efficient cookstoves powered by alcohol fuels (ethanol and methanol) for household cooking in developing countries. The organization implements humanitarian programs (distributing stoves and fuel free of charge to refugee populations via UNHCR) and commercial market development (selling CleanCook stoves and pre-filled ethanol fuel canisters through retail partners such as Ardova in Nigeria). Project Gaia also supports the deployment of community-owned ethanol microdistilleries that convert agricultural waste (molasses, sugarcane juice, fruit waste) into cooking fuel.
Is Project Gaia a public or private company?
Project Gaia is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Project Gaia founded?
Project Gaia was founded in 1995. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Project Gaia based?
Project Gaia is headquartered in Gettysburg, United States, in the North America region.
How does Project Gaia make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Commercial Stove and Fuel Sales are the primary driver. The others are humanitarian Donations and Grants and local Ethanol Production and Sales.
Who are Project Gaia's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are CleanCook Sweden AB, BURN Manufacturing, Envirofit International, EcoZoom, Sistema.bio and BioLite. d.light (formerly Greenlight Planet) is listed as a broad incumbent. ATEC* International is listed as an emerging player. Others are POET and Shell Foundation.
Does Project Gaia have an API?
No public API is recorded for Project Gaia.
What industry is Project Gaia in?
Project Gaia's product category is Clean Cookstoves. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EUAAAHAA, Grain & Sugar-Based Ethanol Production. Its NAICS code is 325193.