Ace Development Bank, with Winrock International as the lead consultant, has collaborated with the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management's UNEP Collaborating Centre for Sustainable Energy and Climate Finance to target the installation of 5,000 Solar Home Systems (SHS) in rural households through credit financing. The total project cost of the new initiative is estimated to be $1.8 million.

Buddha's ATR-72
Buddha Air introduced the first of its two new ATR-72 turboprop aircraft with a test flight from Kathmandu to Biratnagar and Bhadrapur on Wednesday. The 70-seater twin-engine plane is the most fuel-efficient plane in its class, and has noise-reduction technology in the cabin. Buddha's managing director Birendra Bahadur Basnet says the ATR-72s will be used on the carrier's new international routes to Kolkata, Lucknow and Patna in the coming year, while the Beechcraft will start operating flights to Paro in Bhutan from autumn on. The plane will initially be used to operate five flights a day to Biratnagar, taking Buddha's daily seat capacity on that sector from the present 180 to 350.

Eco Yeti
Yeti Airlines has planted 600 trees in a community forest in Kailali under its Green Far-West Project. For every passenger that takes a flight with Yeti on the Kathmandu-Dhangadi route, the company will plant a sapling in a community forest in the far western region.

Swift chasers
Hansraj Hulaschand presented two Pulsar 180 motorbikes to Rupandehi Traffic police. The company has been supporting the traffic police of various districts by providing them with bikes.

SLC win
Seabird International Higher Secondary School will continue to felicitate SLC graduates of Madhyapur Thimi who have made it to the top ten with certificates, awarding the highest scorer with a prize of Rs 12,001. The school will provide scholarships to deserving students.

Smarty cells
CG Impex, the sole authorised distributor of LG Mobiles, has launched the android-powered smartphone LG Optimus (LG GT540). The set allows its users to access a variety of applications and also features enhanced social networking functions in a high-powered multimedia environment.

Real scorer
Ashok Adhikari of Jorpati won the Score the Real Goal Campaign from Dabur Real Juice. Adhikari was presented with the bumper prize � a full option KIA Picanto Car, in the National Stadium before the final match of the World Cup.

Grand prizes
Him Electronics, the official marketer of Samsung, announced the 35 winners of Samsung 32" LCD televisions under its World Cup scheme. Prize distribution took place at the Bakery Caf�, Sundhara.

Biking trophy
After a seven-week promotion, Pepsi announced the final winner of Football Mania. Rajesh Shrestha from Dolakha has won the grand prize of a Hero Honda Karizma ZMR bike. The announcement was made at the Yak & Yeti Hotel.

Branching west
Kumari Bank has opened six new branches in the western region in Kawasoti, Tulsipur, Nepalganj, Salyan, Surkhet and Dhangadi. The bank now has a network of 27 branches and 22 ATMs across the country.