Alternative-energy products remain largely a novelty in Hong Kong, in occasional use as decorative features or perhaps to enhance a 'clean and green' public image.
But neither the lack of interest from consumers nor the absence of financial incentives common elsewhere in the world has deterred an enthusiastic entrepreneur from setting up an alternative-energy equipment manufacturing business in the city.
The man with a mission to see consumers light up with wind- or solar-powered products is Jeremy Ho, who, together with several partners, founded EGL Energy in 2006.
Originally from Singapore, Ho decided to set the business up in Hong Kong after working at Hongkong Telecom - now part of PCCW - as an electrical engineer and at Hong Kong-based energy consultancy PetroAsian Energy as vice-president of technology for wind and solar power projects.
EGL makes wind- and solar-powered street and garden lighting, outdoor surveillance television and wireless internet systems. It made about 60 per cent of its sales last year in Australia, 20 per cent in the European Union and 20 per cent in Asia, with Hong Kong barely evident on the sales register.
'In 2006, the commercial prospects of wind and solar power were not very solid. People who couldn't afford it wouldn't buy it anyway, and many who could did not want to buy it. It's a bit like selling insurance,' Ho said.
