14 June 2023: Stichting Clean Energy and Energy Inclusion for Africa (CEI Africa) announced its intention to award three results-based financing (RBF) grants for a total of up to USD 7.3M to Kenyan green mini grid (GMG) developers, Renewvia, Kudura and PowerHive, for the creation of approximately 21,110 green mini grid connections in underserved communities in northern and south-western Kenya.

Renewvia Energy Kenya Ltd (Renewvia) was awarded an RBF grant of up to USD 4.2M to unlock approximately 14,000 new connections, providing electricity access to a network of refugee camps in the area of Kakuma, a town in the far northern region of Turkana County. The resulting project, an expansion of their existing generation plant and power lines, promises to be the largest solar mini grid for any community in East Africa, serving a total of 19,000 customers from a 2.4 MW solar power plant with 6 MWh of battery storage.

Renewvia has successfully deployed mini grids on islands in Lake Victoria, in the semi-arid northern areas of Kenya, and all over southern Nigeria, serving over 7,500 customers. They have also developed commercial sites in Kakuma, Kenya, for United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the World Food Program.

KUDURA Power East Africa Ltd (KUDURA), an energy utility company operating renewable mini grids serving rural off-grid communities in East Africa, was awarded an RBF grant of up to USD 2.8M to unlock 5,909 connections, also in Turkana County. The company is operating 11 GMG sites in Busia County, serving over 4,000 customers across 16 communities and is currently constructing another 21 mini grids in Turkana. The expansion is co-funded by RVE.SOL S.A. (Portugal) and InfraCo Africa (UK).

PowerHive East Africa Limited was awarded an RBF grant of up to USD 300,000 to unlock approximately 1,202 connections in rural south-western Kenya. PowerHive, a technology venture that partners with utilities and independent power producers to provide access to mini grid electricity for rural homes and businesses, has already installed 20 mini grids with a generation capacity of 890 kW.

CEI Africa was established by KfW on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in 2021 to improve access to clean energy for rural and peri-urban households and enterprises in Sub-Saharan Africa. CEI Africa is managed by a pioneering consortium of Triple Jump B.V., Persistent Energy and GreenMax Capital Group. Triple Jump is the Foundation Manager, Persistent is the Crowdlending window lead, and GreenMax is the RBF window lead.

Conceptualized as a one-stop-shop for mini grid developers and off-grid solar companies, CEI Africa offers a variety of financing instruments combined with technical assistance. The Foundation’s Crowdlending window provides debt and investment products in collaboration with European crowdlenders, while the Results-based financing window, which offers RBF grants and forgivable loans.

CEI Africa has allocated EUR 21M to support project developers to finance GMGs through RBF, including the provision of technical assistance. Renewvia, Kudura and PowerHive were selected in CEI Africa’s first call for site specific applications. CEI Africa has already expanded its RBF financing of GMGs to include Mali, DRC and Benin. If additional funding becomes available in 2024, further expansion is intended to Sierra Leone, Madagascar and other countries.

“I’m very proud of our Kenyan team’s achievements to date,” said KUDURA’s CEO Vivian Vendeirinho. “Despite a regulatory set-back for our planned scale up in Busia County, our team rallied to turn this set-back into a massive growth opportunity. With close cooperation of the Turkana County Government, we’ve identified a much larger pipeline of rural consumers with a significant social and commercial need for clean energy.”

“The advent of the CEI Africa Kenya funding window was perfect timing for us. The detailed technical support received from the GreenMax and Persistent teams has resulted in a compelling investment case for our next equity round and will push our mini grid business to profitability ahead of our 5-year plans,” added Vendeirinho.

“We are thrilled to partner with CEI Africa to make further progress towards meeting the massive demand for reliable and affordable energy in Kakuma Refugee Camp and Kalobeyei Settlement,” said Renewvia’s Director of African Project Development Douglas Cox. “We look forward to seeing what the highly innovative refugees and host community members in this area do with our electricity.”

“On behalf of CEI Africa, we are delighted to support expansion of energy access in the remote areas of northern and south-western Kenya,” said GreenMax CEO Clifford J. Aron. “Electricity is a cornerstone of economic development and companies like Renewvia, Kudura and PowerHive are on the front line of electrifying underserved counties in Kenya, thus supporting the government’s target of universal electrification.”

The three RBF grant awards are pursuant to fulfillment of certain conditions precedent agreed to between CEI Africa, Renewvia, Kudura and PowerHive, respectively, which includes, among others, the execution of a Grant Agreement. The RBF grant funding will be disbursed upon completion of new electricity connections.

30 May 2023: The scalable loan instrument, arranged and structured by Citi with participation from leading development finance institutions and commercial lenders, helps expand Kenyans’ access to finance to purchase green, affordable solar systems.

Sun King and Citi have established a first-of-its-kind, bank-led and entirely Kenyan-Shilling-denominated $130 million sustainable securitisation transaction. The transaction leverages Sun King’s existing and future Kenyan customers’ payments for solar products to raise funding for further growth and expansion.

Arranged by Citi and supported by leading development finance institutions and commercial lenders from six countries across the globe, the investment paves the way for future African securitisation deals and diversifies funding for Kenya’s off-grid solar energy sector. Through the proposed transaction, customers’ future payments for solar products bought on credit will be securitised and funded by investors.

Approximately three out of every ten Kenyans live without access to electricity. Many off-grid households devote 5 to 10% of their income to dim, smoky kerosene lanterns or smog-emitting gas generators for light and power. Solar energy offers clean and reliable energy as well as long-term cost savings for homes and businesses, but the upfront equipment cost blocks many Kenyan consumers from transitioning to solar energy.

Sun King designs, distributes, installs and finances solar energy solutions for African and Asian households and businesses who cannot access, rely on or afford traditional electric grid connections. Sun King customers can purchase products using the company’s technology-enabled, pay-as-you-go “Easy Buy” financing service, which breaks payments down into regular, affordable instalments. These payments can be made via mobile money or cash for as little as $0.15 a day. Approximately half of Sun King’s registered pay-as-you-go customers in Kenya are women, the majority of whom access formal financing products for the first time.

Under the securitisation structure, investors are financing the pooled expected future payments from over a million Sun King customers. The structure connects unbanked or underbanked customers to the finance they require to purchase solar assets and provides investors with access to a steady yet underserved market that offers risk-diversified returns.

“Over one billion people live off the reliable electric grid. This number is projected to rise. This securitisation could be key to unlocking the extensive capital needed to fund solar energy initiatives at the scale the climate crisis requires. We applaud Citi for orchestrating this innovative transaction. These trailblazing financial mechanisms can convert the global challenges of energy access, social development and climate action into compelling investment opportunities.” Commented Sun King’s Co-Founder, Anish Thakkar.

Sun King is raising the securitisation funds using its Sustainable Financing Framework, which has received a Second Party Opinion (SPO) from Moody’s Investor Relations. The SPO assesses the framework with a Very Good Sustainable Quality Score (SQS) and highlights its significant contribution to sustainability.

The framework, facilitated by Citi, explains Sun King’s approach to integrating sustainability considerations into specific financial instruments, which facilitate enhanced access to clean energy and contribute to meeting the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.

This securitisation involves participations by both commercial and development finance institutions, including ABSA Kenya, British International Investment, Citi, FMO, Norfund, Standard Bank Kenya and the Trade and Development Bank. Citi served as the sole arranger, primary placement agent, security agent, facility agent, cash manager, sustainability structuring bank and secured accounts bank with Standard Bank Kenya acting as the co-placement agent.

Manolo Falco, Global Co-Head of Investment Banking, at Citi said “Sun King has been an important client for many years and we are pleased to be supporting them with this catalytic transaction. Our unrivalled global network and track record for delivering innovative sustainable finance solutions means we are expertly placed to build local sustainable financial infrastructure from the ground up. This first-of-its-kind deal originated from Citi’s Social Finance division, which supports socially conscious companies globally and was delivered in conjunction with our leading Financing and Securitisations team.”

17 May 2023: Shortlist and African Management Institute (AMI) announce the launch of the Energy Access Talent Initiative (EATI), a new £2.5 million collaboration dedicated to training and securing employment in the clean energy sector for over 1,600 African youth across sub-Saharan Africa. The initiative is focused on building a strong, diverse workforce of talented young professionals across Africa to expand access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.

The new EATI programme is funded with UK aid from the UK government via the Transforming Energy Access (TEA) platform, and builds on the success of Shortlist and AMI’s Off-Grid Talent Initiative (OGTI), also backed by TEA, with support from the University of Cape Town. The OGTI programme ran from 2019-2021 and supported nearly 900 young professionals in over 100 energy companies across 23 African countries. The initiative had a 55% female participation rate with 94% of placements by Shortlist converting to permanent jobs, and 99% of participating companies in AMI’s management programmes reporting improved personnel performance.

“Education is no longer enough to guarantee a job; young people need on-the-job experience. Programs like this bridge the gap between education and real, career-track employment – and renewable energy and climate are poised to create more jobs on the continent than any other sector in the next decade,” said Paul Breloff, CEO of Shortlist.

Lack of skilled talent prepared to manage rapid growth is a significant barrier to scale in the emerging market clean energy sector – a huge, missed opportunity given the potential for Africa’s clean energy companies both to transform the continent’s climate future, and to create hundreds of thousands of jobs for youth.

“AMI and Shortlist have pioneered a practical, proven and scalable solution to talent development for the clean energy sector. The renewed TEA funding will enable us to scale this approach to reach even more young professionals,” said Rebecca Harrison, Co-Founder and CEO of AMI. “We’ve replaced traditional, ineffective hit-and-run training with a coherent approach to upskilling and job placement that will equip and inspire the next generation of African talent to accelerate Africa’s just energy transition,” said Rebecca Harrison, Co-Founder and CEO of AMI.

Working together through EATI, Shortlist and AMI will take a deliberate, youth-centric and gender-equitable approach to upskilling and recruitment for clean energy companies. Shortlist will work with clean energy companies to identify talent gaps. It then addresses these labour shortages by raising awareness and excitement around emerging careers in clean energy through marketing campaigns, and then putting young people with little or no work experience into “last mile” on-the-job experiences”.

AMI will support young people placed by Shortlist with professional skills and work readiness training. The company will also offer practical leadership development programmes for emerging female leaders and middle managers already working in the sector, accelerating career growth and closing the talent gap, especially for under-represented young women.

“We are delighted to be supporting Shortlist and AMI on the next phase of their talent recruitment and training work following an impactful and well received first phase. In EATI, our partners have focussed more on supporting those most in need, increasing impact and value for money of UK aid and integrating their activity into the rest of the Transforming Energy Access programme to ensure that the results are more than the sum of its parts,” said David Aitken, TEA, Programme Director.

To learn more about the programmes visit the following links:

• Shortlist Energy Access Talent Initiative page: https://shortlist.net/talent-for-clean-energy/
• AMI’s Empowering Managers Programme (offered in English or French): https://www.africanmanagers.org/programmes/empowering-managers/
• AMI & University of Cape Town’s Future Female Leaders in Energy Programme: https://www.africanmanagers.org/future-female-leaders-in-energy/

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About the TEA Platform: Transforming Energy Access (TEA), funded by UK aid, is a research and innovation platform supporting the technologies, business models and skills needed to enable an inclusive clean energy transition. TEA works via partnerships to support emerging clean energy generation technologies, productive appliances, smart networks, energy storage and more. It increases access to clean, modern energy services for people and enterprises in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, improving their lives, creating jobs and boosting green economic opportunities.

About Shortlist: Shortlist is a talent matching and employability platform focused on two core offerings: Shortlist Search provides executive search services for leading startups and impact organizations in Africa, while our Shortlist Futures team designs and implements youth employment and apprenticeship programs across Africa in partnership with donors, governments, enterprises, and education institutions. These programs span several sectors including off-grid energy, climate technology and digital jobs, and are often paired with a research component to drive further awareness and insights into critical talent needs. Since launching in 2015, Shortlist has worked with over 900 employers globally, placed over 4,000 candidates into jobs in over 30 countries, and screened over 1.5 million candidates. Shortlist is a global team of 45 people, including 40 recruiters, merging best in class recruitment services with technology built-for-purpose in Kenya.

About African Management Institute: AMI enables ambitious businesses and leaders across Africa to thrive, through practical tools and training. We equip leaders with tools to build their business, help companies train their teams and run work readiness programmes for young people starting their careers. AMI’s programmes combine online and mobile tools with interactive experiential workshops and on-the-job practice and support. AMI has trained over 42,000 people in over 39 countries and has offices in Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal, and South Africa, with additional presence in Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, and Cote’ d’Ivoire. For more information, visit: https://www.africanmanagers.org/.

8 May 2023: The project was launched in late 2021 and aimed to establish the company’s remote monitoring and control products and services for solar and pumping systems in the Kenyan market.

As part of the project, marketing and sales measures were implemented by EcoPhi in cooperation with the German Energy Agency (dena). A special focus of the activities was the training of local partners. At a formal opening ceremony, the project was successfully presented to existing partners, customers and stakeholders by CTO Sebastian Zenz in Nairobi.

A solution specifically for the growing solar and water market

The expansion of solar energy and water infrastructure is progressing rapidly in the country. However, solar and pumping systems can only contribute to climate protection and economic development if they are operated sustainably. This is the goal of the company EcoPhi. It offers remote monitoring and digitization solutions specifically for systems in rural regions and harsh environments. EcoPhi systems are characterized by being robust and easy to install, while being able to be used in a wide range of different applications.

Installers, operators and end-users can thus keep an eye on their plants at all times and intervene quickly in the event of problems or carry out remote maintenance without having to travel long distances. This saves time and money and ensures that the plants are operating longer.

In addition, especially in the case of widely distributed plants, the management of the systems poses great challenges for the operators and requires high capacities. Digital solutions can help to operate the plants more efficiently and sustainably.

The EcoPhi systems – modular and versatile

A special advantage of the EcoPhi systems is their modularity and flexibility of use. Thus, the systems can even be used economically in small solar home systems – but also in large and complex installations such as mini-grids or C&I projects.

A closer look at the EcoPhi systems installed in Kenya shows just how versatile and modular EcoPhi’s products and services are. At the beginning of the RES project, the company had not yet implemented any projects in the country. Since then, more than 50 monitoring and control projects have been installed in different areas such as solar energy, pumping stations, refrigerated containers as well as biomass boilers.

This is an important advantage for customers who install and operate different types of plants. Thanks to EcoPhi’s solutions, customers do not have to use different solutions for monitoring and controlling the plants, but can cover this centrally and easily through the EcoPhi platform.

Further expansion of activities in Kenya even after completion of the project

The successful implementation of the project has enabled EcoPhi to establish a solid position in the market of monitoring and control solutions for solar and water systems. The company can now rely on a good customer base and a network of installation and distribution partners.

“We are proud to be an increasingly important part of the Kenyan market and now plan to further expand our presence in the market,” said CTO Sebastian Zenz during the project’s official commissioning ceremony in Nairobi. “The experience and knowledge gained from the project will be used as a basis for our future activities.”

To continue to be successful in the future, EcoPhi strives to constantly improve its services and products through innovative ideas and effective partnerships. In addition to the technical improvement of the products and software, further steps will be taken to expand the network of service partners and distributors in order to reach customers faster and increase the service level.

Kenya is strategically a very interesting market for EcoPhi. In addition to selling products in the market, Kenya is going to become a hub for the company’s activities in East Africa. The possibility of local production is also currently being planned. This will simplify logistical challenges. In addition, the increased value added locally can create jobs and strengthen Kenya as a production location, so that Kenya can become not only a sales market but also a production market for EcoPhi.

The RES project Kenya is being funded as part of the Renewable Energy Solutions Programme of the German Energy Solutions Initiative of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action.

26 April 2023: Ignite Power, a technology-first, UAE-headquartered provider of solar solutions in Africa, announced today the acquisition of Mwezi’s solar solutions portfolio in Kenya. The acquisition will allow Ignite Power to expand its presence in the country, utilizing its proven suite of technologies and standard operating procedures to service Mwezi’s existing portfolio and increase its impact in the region.

Mwezi, a well-known distributor of solar solutions in Kenya, has been a key player in the country’s solar energy sector for several years. The company has deployed over 50,000 solar home systems across Kenya, directly impacting the lives of 250,000 people. Ignite Power’s acquisition of Mwezi’s portfolio is a strategic move aimed at strengthening its position in Kenya’s rapidly growing solar energy market.

“We are thrilled to welcome Mwezi, a truly values-driven company, to the Ignite Power family through the acquisition,” said Yariv Cohen, CEO of Ignite Power. “This strategic move will enable us to leverage our expertise and experience to further expand our impact in the region, while servicing Mwezi’s existing customers and providing them with access to reliable, sustainable, and affordable home electricity.”

Ignite Power’s proven technologies and SOPs have made it a leading provider of solar solutions in Africa, with a strong presence in several countries across the continent. The acquisition of Mwezi’s portfolio will enable Ignite to further enhance its position in Kenya’s solar energy market, expanding its customer base across the country.

This acquisition follows Ignite Power’s recent acquisition of Pawame Kenya, which has been a major player in Kenya’s solar energy sector for several years. Ignite Power has been expanding its reach across Africa through both organic growth and strategic acquisitions, replicating its proven models of operation and in-house technologies to reach extreme cost-efficiency, customer affordability, and impact at scale.

“We are thrilled to see the Mwezi solar solutions portfolio in Kenya now a part of the Ignite Power family,” said Mwezi’s founder and CEO, Mike Sherry. “I am confident that Ignite’s expertise and experience in the solar energy sector will enable them to expand on the work that we have accomplished and continue to provide high-quality services to our customers. We look forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on communities across Kenya.”

“As we continue to grow and expand our presence in Africa, we remain committed to our mission of providing sustainable energy solutions to communities across the continent,” said Cohen. “The acquisition of Mwezi’s solar solutions portfolio and our recent acquisition of Pawame Kenya are just two examples of our commitment to this mission. We look forward to working with our new partners and customers to drive positive change, and create a more sustainable future for all.”

25 April 2023: Early in 2022, the first-ever Peace Renewable Energy Credit (P-REC) transaction in South Sudan was announced, executed by U.S.-based 3Degrees and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) with support from Energy Peace Partners (EPP). In the agreement, 3Degrees obtained the P-RECs generated from a 700kWp solar plant in IOM’s Humanitarian Hub in Malakal. Block, a global technology company with a focus on financial services, purchased the P-RECs from 3Degrees.

The arrangement enabled IOM to fund the solar electrification of the Malakal Teaching Hospital, the main healthcare facility serving the city of Malakal and the surrounding region.This area was destroyed in the country’s civil war and now houses one of the largest camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in South Sudan. The team is pleased to announce that the hospital’s new solar system is now operational and is projected to reduce fuel consumption by at least 85% annually.

On the heels of the successful completion of the Malakal hospital project, 3Degrees, IOM, and EPP collaborated to replicate a second P-REC issuance in South Sudan, in which additional P-RECs from the solar plant in IOM’s Humanitarian Hub in Malakal will support the solar electrification of Bor State Hospital. Block also served as the purchaser of this subsequent batch of P-RECs. Currently the hospital operates with minimal, undependable electricity and this project will ensure a 24/7 power supply for the hospital’s critical care units and enable the hospital to provide reliable, safe services to the community, including gradually opening night services. Bor State Hospital currently relies on four diesel generators that run computers, fans in each of the wards, refrigerators, sterilization materials in the operating room, lights, surgical equipment, and more.

P-RECs are international renewable energy certificates (I-RECs) with a supplementary quality label certifying unique socio-economic co-benefits associated with new renewable energy generation. They are issued from qualifying projects in target countries characterized by high risk of conflict, high vulnerability to climate change and low levels of electrification. P-RECs serve to monetize renewable energy generation from eligible projects in order to unlock private sector capital for high-impact renewable energy projects in fragile, energy-poor countries. EPP developed and is the exclusive issuer of P-RECs.

“This new P-REC transaction demonstrates both the need and potential for innovative solutions like the P-REC to meet the challenges of electricity access in South Sudan, the least electrified country in the world,” said Dave Mozersky, President of Energy Peace Partners. “We are grateful to our partners Block, 3Degrees, and IOM for their commitment, vision and cooperation, and thrilled that this P-REC transaction will support an additional hospital electrification project in Bor.”

“3Degrees has now executed several P-REC transactions, and it is remarkable to see the meaningful impact these projects have on energy-poor, climate-fragile communities,” said Steve McDougal, CEO, 3Degrees. “These two P-REC transactions in South Sudan are helping the hospitals provide safer, more reliable service to their patients – making a true difference in people’s lives. It was a pleasure to collaborate again with Block, Energy Peace Partners, and IOM, and we look forward to supporting more of our customers in their goal of pursuing meaningful renewable energy procurement.”

“As a global community, we must do all we can to build the resilience of the most vulnerable people so they can cope with the impacts of a changing climate and conflict. Environmental sustainability and the energy transition must be at the heart of building durable solutions,” said Amy Pope, Deputy Director General, IOM. “For us, the clean energy transition means transitioning our own facilities to cleaner energy sources and providing displaced people with sustainable energy so they can cook, light their homes and get access to critical health care services. It also means using clean energy as a tool for peace. We are excited to continue our partnership with 3Degrees and Energy Peace Partners that benefits both people and the planet.”

“P-RECs provide Block an opportunity to support high impact clean energy projects that have a clear connection to our purpose of economic empowerment,” said Neil Jorgensen, Global ESG Lead at Block. “We’re thrilled to continue to leverage our renewable energy portfolio to help drive tangible, positive benefits where it is needed the most and we hope to see more private sector support for these types of solarization projects in the future.”

To read more about the largest P-REC transaction in South Sudan that funded Malakal Teaching Hospital solar electrification project, click here.

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About EPP: Energy Peace Partners leverages climate and finance solutions to promote peace in the world’s most fragile regions. Our climate-sensitive approach expands the existing toolkit for peace and development by extending the renewable energy revolution to some of the planet’s most vulnerable populations. We address the intersection of energy poverty, conflict risk and climate vulnerability to demonstrate the peace dividends of clean energy.

About IOM: The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a related organization of the United Nations system and is the leading intergovernmental organization in the field of migration. IOM is committed to the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society. From its roots as an operational logistics agency following the Second World War, it has broadened its scope to become an essential international actor in the field of human mobility, supporting migrants across the world, developing effective responses to the shifting dynamics of migration, and a key source of advice on migration policy and practice. The Organization works in emergency situations, developing the resilience of all people on the move, and particularly those in situations of vulnerability, as well as building capacity within governments to manage all forms and impacts of mobility.

About Block: Block, Inc. (NYSE: SQ) is a global technology company with a focus on financial services. Made up of Square, Cash App, Spiral, TIDAL, and TBD, we build tools to help more people access the economy. Square helps sellers run and grow their businesses with its integrated ecosystem of commerce solutions, business software, and banking services. With Cash App, anyone can easily send, spend, or invest their money in stocks or Bitcoin. Spiral builds and funds free, open-source Bitcoin projects. Artists use TIDAL to help them succeed as entrepreneurs and connect more deeply with fans. TBD is building an open developer platform to make it easier to access Bitcoin and other blockchain technologies without having to go through an institution.

20 April 2023: X-Solar Systems has acquired Sunplugged Energy, one of the leading solar home systems providers in Zimbabwe. From its HQ in Harare, Sunplugged Energy provides clean energy solutions to off-grid households living in rural and peri-urban areas of Zimbabwe.

The Danish-founded cleantech company, X-Solar Systems, has gained a leading position in Kenya with its proprietary-designed solar home system. From its offices in Copenhagen and Nairobi, X-Solar Systems delivers clean energy and connectivity to rural households living without access to reliable electricity as well as solar-powered solutions for commercial and industrial (C&I) projects. By partnering with Sunplugged Energy, the X-Solar Systems Group now employs more than 150 people across Denmark, Kenya and Zimbabwe.

The acquisition of Sunplugged Energy is an important step in X-Solar Systems’ growth strategy. “In Sunplugged Energy we saw the opportunity to expand into Zimbabwe, a highly attractive and high-growing market for solar home systems and C&I, by partnering up with one of the leading players within the industry. Sunplugged Energy has been on an incredible journey in its short lifetime, and we are impressed by the dedication and ambitions of the management team” says Thomas Hansen, CEO of X-Solar Systems. “With the acquisition we are expanding our presence across Sub-Saharan Africa and growing our ability to provide affordable off-grid energy and connectivity to rural households”.

Sunplugged Energy was founded in early 2022 by CEO Fidelis Mashonga as a spin-off from a larger solar energy developer. The company quickly experienced a rapid growth due to the huge demand for reliable electricity solutions in Zimbabwe – a country where half of the population is living off-grid and the national power grid experiences outages up to 22 hours per day.

Fidelis Mashonga will continue as country manager of Zimbabwe. “It is time to take Sunplugged Energy to the next level. In X-Solar Systems, we saw the right partner who shares our values, our ambitions, and our strong focus on social impact. We will continue to provide top quality products and as part of the X-Solar Systems family, we will become even more relevant to our target customers” says Fidelis Mashonga, CEO of Sunplugged Energy.

X-Solar Systems has been assisted by Baker Tilly and DLA Piper as financial and legal advisors.

12 April 2023: Access to productive use appliances can deliver significant economic, health, education, and quality of life benefits for the approximately 600 million people across the African continent who lack access to electricity. This can also put under-electrified parts of the world on a low-carbon pathway to electrification. However, affordability remains a major barrier to access and scale. The Productive Use Appliance Financing Facility aims to help address the affordability barrier, and the current auction window will make procurement subsidies available for companies in six African countries.

Makena Ireri, Director at the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, said: “The Facility will help make high-quality, productive use appliances more affordable and accessible. These technologies can transform lives and livelihoods by helping to create new green energy-enabled jobs, enhance income generation for micro-enterprises and smallholder farmers, and improve the sustainability of renewable energy infrastructure projects through increased demand for electricity.”

The Facility’s initial scope includes the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Uganda based on growth potential and market maturity. Eligible technologies include electric pressure cookers, fans, milling, solar water pumps, refrigerators/freezers, and walk-in cold storage. All technologies must complete quality assurance testing, helping to ensure that users receive high-quality products.

Eligible distributors can also apply for capacity-building small grants to offset one-off costs associated with nascent PUA business lines, such as warehouse space, staffing, or training. The procurement subsidies and capacity-building grants will allow eligible companies to lower costs for customers while investing in long-term growth. Participating companies may also agree for the Facility to share their information with Nithio, should they wish to be considered for debt investment to help them further scale their business and reach more consumers.

Interested companies should send in their applications by the end of day on April 21, 2023. Please check out these resources to learn more about the program, including eligibility requirements of the procurement subsidy auction window and how to submit a subsidy request. For any other questions, please get in touch with This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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About the Facility : Launched in October 2022 by CLASP and Nithio, with support from the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), the Facility supports companies in catalyzing the growth of productive use appliance markets. Facility operations will also generate a foundational data set on appliance market activity and the developmental impacts of appliances, improving our collective knowledge base on appliance performance, national markets, and consumer experience and satisfaction.

Companies can leverage the Facility to access bulk discounts on solar appliance procurement and offer products on credit to lower the cost of appliances for end-user. The Facility also provides smaller capacity-building grants and advisory support for PUA distributors to help establish credit systems and increase their investment readiness.

Facility support is intended to help companies expand their reach and cater to a broader market, helping to deliver essential technologies to more consumers in East and West Africa.

About CLASP: CLASP focuses on appliance & equipment energy performance and quality, to mitigate and adapt to climate change and expand access to clean energy. Super-efficient and high-quality appliances accelerate access to and use of renewable energy for the world’s poorest people. CLASP supports progress on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 7, affordable and sustainable energy for all. Renewable energy services like cooling, communications, and mechanization empower low-income communities and improve lives in a climate-friendly way. CLASP works globally and has teams in Washington, DC; Nairobi, Kenya; New Delhi, India; Brussels, Belgium; and Jakarta, Indonesia. For more information, visit: https://clasp.ngo/.

About Nithio: Nithio is an energy financing platform powered by its innovative credit risk analytics engine. Nithio leverages its deep sector expertise, geospatial data, and artificial intelligence (AI) to forecast repayment patterns by consumer segment, provide detailed insight on projected cash flows, and finance energy access technologies. For more information, visit: https://www.nithio.com/.

About the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP): The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) is an alliance of local entrepreneurs, governments in emerging and developed economies, and technology, policy, and financing partners. Our common mission is to support developing countries’ shift to a clean energy, pro-growth model that ensures universal energy access and unlocks a new era of inclusive economic growth, while enabling the global community to meet critical climate goals during the next decade. In doing so, as an Alliance we aim to enable 150 million new jobs, reduce 4 gigatons of future carbon emissions, and expand clean energy access to one billion people. With philanthropic partners, Bezos Earth Fund, IKEA Foundation, and The Rockefeller Foundation, GEAPP works to build the enabling environment, capacity, and market conditions for private sector solutions, catalyze new business models through innovation and entrepreneurship, and deploy high-risk capital to encourage private sector solutions, and assist just transition solutions.For more information, visit: https://www.energyalliance.org/.

5 April 2023: The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will support the development of seven innovative financial aggregation models targeting a variety of clean energy solutions ranging from off-grid solar, mini-grids and e-mobility to clean cooking, across various East African countries.

These solutions were competitively selected as the winners of the UNDP Climate Aggregation Platform Financial Innovation Challenge, which was a global call for applications launched in July 2022 by the Climate Aggregation Platform (CAP), a UNDP initiative to promote the scale-up of financial aggregation for small-scale, low-carbon energy assets in developing countries. Funded by the Global Environment Facility, the CAP is a flagship initiative of UNDP’s Sustainable Energy Hub to support the structuring and deployment of innovative business models and financial mechanisms to accelerate energy access and the clean energy transition.

Through this innovation challenge, UNDP aims to foster the development of innovative financial aggregation structures and models that can help increase the availability and reduce the cost of financing for low-carbon energy in East Africa. And, in doing so, help close the investment gap to achieve universal energy access.

“We are excited to support the development of such innovative and pioneering financial solutions for clean energy,” said Riad Meddeb, Director of UNDP’s Sustainable Energy Hub. “Increasing energy access is critical to advance socio-economic development and progress on the Sustainable Development Goals in East Africa. 242 million people, close to half of the region’s population, do not have access to electricity. We need to think outside the box to close this gap—business-as-usual won’t do. Developing new ways of financing clean energy is critical to ensure that everyone can have access to affordable, reliable energy and the opportunities it brings.”

Distributed renewable energy solutions have been identified as the least-cost, fastest option to rapidly close the energy access gap in Africa by 2030. However, scaling these solutions requires large upfront public and private investments, which are currently lacking due to a series of barriers, including perceived investment risks.

Recent research by UNDP shows that financial aggregation holds great potential in enabling these upfront large-scale investments. It could notably help reduce the mismatch between distributed renewable energy funding needs and investor requirements, and in turn increase investments in such solutions. Yet, to date, there are few examples that have turned this potential into reality.

Financial aggregation instruments are complex, and their successful implementation depends on a favorable enabling environment. In that sense, the market is still nascent and faces a range of barriers that need to be addressed if financial aggregation is to be widely employed and scaled.

For that reason, through the CAP Financial Innovation Challenge, UNDP aims to support solutions at the design stage, so that novel financial aggregation structures and models can be developed that can lead to financially closed transactions in East Africa, in the near future.

In response to the call, UNDP received many applications from around the globe, with very diverse and interesting innovations, and targeting different energy sub-sectors and countries in East Africa – While the call for applications was open to applicants from any country, supported solutions are to be developed in view of being deployed in one or multiple developing countries in East Africa, with a special focus on the CAP’s two pilot countries, Rwanda and Uganda.

The seven solutions below were competitively selected as the winners of UNDP’s Climate Aggregation Platform Financial Innovation Challenge. Each of them involves a different approach to financial aggregation to help unlock new sources of financing for the clean energy sector, including climate finance. These target different sub-sectors, from off-grid and on-grid solar, mini-grids, productive use appliances, e-mobility to clean cooking, and could be deployed across different countries in East Africa including Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mozambique.

• ‘AI-enabled financing to scale energy access’, by Nithio: Nithio will adapt its data-driven blended-finance model – a sustainable, risk-informed approach to finance aggregated receivables for the off grid solar sector – to determine how it can be best tailored to the Rwandan market. [Target country: Rwanda]
• ‘A digital platform to bundle debt and results-based payments with climate finance’, by 4R Digital: Through its Carbon Value Exchange platform, 4R Digital will connect micro-small clean energy products with the Voluntary Carbon Markets – enabling aggregation of hundreds of thousands of clean energy device users. 4R Digital will explore how to layer additional product financing opportunities on top of the carbon related payments. [Target countries: Uganda, Kenya]
• ‘Carbon Credit Aggregator Platform’, by Mirova SunFunder: Mirova SunFunder will explore the feasibility of setting up a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to aggregate the carbon rights of clean energy companies. Financial aggregation at the SPV level would enable a group of similar companies to attract the required funding for pre-financing their activities. [Target countries: Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi]
• ‘E2W Africa, a financing platform for electric vehicles’, by PJ & Company: PJ & Company will develop a pioneering financing platform to provide both growth equity and small-scale asset finance for the electric vehicles sector in East Africa – Creating a founder-friendly finance instrument to help grow this asset-heavy industry. [Target countries: Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia]
• ‘A platform for scaling up off-balance sheet receivables financing for off-grid solar’ by Solaris Offgrid: Solaris Offgrid will develop a platform to allow last-mile off-grid solar companies to sell pools of receivables, and partner funds to purchase these based on the investment criteria of debt providers – Aggregating receivables to allow debt funds to deploy larger amounts of capital. [Target country: Uganda]
• ‘Exploring securitization for minigrid projects’, by Hypoport Africa: Hypoport proposes to introduce the concept of securitization and other innovative structured lending solutions for PAYGO solar assets in East Africa – To show that once payment data is structured and monitored effectively using state of the art data management, innovative structures can be introduced that will reduce costs of capital and improve the efficiency of PAYGO portfolios. [Target countries: Mozambique, Malawi, Rwanda, Kenya]
• ‘Powerblocks, a platform to accelerate clean energy access in emerging markets’, by Incharge Energy: Incharge Energy proposes to develop PowerBlocks, a Web3 platform to help increase the profitability and utilisation of distributed renewable assets in emerging markets through the financing and provision of productive use off-takers, initially via bitcoin mining, and using smart contracts to pool funding from crypto investors. [Target countries: Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar.

UNDP will provide an award of up to US$40,000 to each of these innovators to develop a Feasibility Study for their Innovative Financial Aggregation Structure or Model. UNDP will also promote the supported innovations within UNDP and to a broader audience across its network.

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About the Climate Aggregation Platform: The Climate Aggregation Platform (CAP) promotes the scale-up of financial aggregation for small-scale, low-carbon energy assets in developing countries – with the goal to increase access to and lower the cost of financing for the clean energy sector. In so doing, the CAP can contribute to improving the lives of people in developing countries, bringing about affordable, reliable and clean energy. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is implementing the CAP, in partnership with the Climate Bonds Initiative, with initial seed-funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF). The CAP is a flagship initiative of the Sustainable Energy Hub to support the structuring and deployment of innovative business models and financial mechanisms to accelerate energy access and the clean energy transition. For more information, visit: https://www.undp.org/climate-aggregation-platform.

About the UNDP Sustainable Energy Hub: The UNDP Sustainable Energy Hub is a platform to bring together and catalyze UNDP’s work on energy for development. It is a network of partners that work alongside countries to transform energy systems through an integrated agenda focused on the policy, technology and financial shifts that shape sustainable economic development. It helps countries build a net-zero society that puts people first and is driven by a just, sustainable energy transition that leaves no one behind. This includes mobilizing partners to enable 500 million additional people to have access to sustainable, reliable, affordable energy by 2025. For more information, visit: undp.org/energy.

• Schneider Electric, Capelan, Capital Croissance and Investisseurs & Partenaires (I&P) team up with Gaia Impact team to launch Gaia Energy Impact Fund II, a venture capital fund specializing in the energy transition in Africa and the support of entrepreneurs with high environmental and social impact.

21 March 2023: Gaia Impact team, Capital Croissance, Schneider Electric, Capelan and I&P, aware of the challenge represented by the access to energy in Africa, are launching Gaia Energy Impact Fund II (GEIF II), an investment fund that meets the stringent impact guidelines of Article 9 of the SFDR regulation. This fund, which targets €80M in commitments, will bring together an agile coalition of entrepreneurs, families and familyoffices, companies, and institutional investors willing to reconcile financial return, social impact and environmental impact.

The GEIF II fund will be managed by Capital Croissance, an AMF-approved management company, while the Gaia Impact team will act as exclusive advisor. Schneider Electric and Capelan will each invest €15M. Investisseurs & Partenaires will bring its expertise on the different countries of the African continent and technical assistance to the Gaia Impact team.

Gaia Impact Fund II will benefit from the experience gained by the Gaia Impact team. In 2017, Hélène Demaegdt created Gaia Impact Fund I, financed by the French family office Capelan, with the aim of acting for the climate and catalyzing private investment in the energy sector in Africa and the rest of the world. She then put together a team of entrepreneurs and expert investors to finance and support start-ups and SMEs active in the decentralized renewable energy value chain.

The GEIF II fund will invest, in equity and quasi-equity, between €500k and €5M in around twenty companies in the early (Seed and Series A) or growth phase (Series B). The majority of investments will be made in companies operating in Africa (up to 15% in other emerging countries) in the sectors of energy access, productive use of energy, electric mobility, new energies and enabling technologies. It aims to bring energy to 4M people, create 20,000 jobs while saving 4MT of CO2. These goals are a key component of the investment team’s financial incentive.

The coalition targets an initial closing of €40M in 2023 and a final closing at the first half of 2024 for a total Target amount of €80M.

Hélène Demaegdt, President-Founder of Gaia Impact: "We are delighted to be joined by new partners. Thanks to them, our action in favor of the energy transition in Africa takes a new dimension. We are convinced that this new coalition of expert and complementary actors aligned on the same vision will allow the Gaia Impact team to strengthen its social and environmental impact, by promoting the conditions of economic".

Christophe Poline, Director Sustainable Investments of Schneider Electric: "GIF II is a great opportunity for Schneider Electric to reinforce its commitment to promote clean and efficient energy for the development of communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. This commitment is part of Schneider Electric’s actions for a just transition worldwide. With our experience in solidarity and impact investing, we are convinced that the partnership with Gaia Impact, I&P and Capital Croissance will bring the efficiency and professionalism necessary to achieve the project’s impact objectives".

Eric Neuplanche, President-Founder of Capital Croissance: "We were seduced by the achievements and the great professionalism of the Gaia Impact team since 2017 and even more by the very strong environmental and social ambition of this impact fund: over the life of the fund, we aim to create 20,000 jobs, give access to energy to 4,000,000 people who are currently without it and save 4,000,000 tons of CO2 by substituting polluting energy with decarbonized energy. The entire Capital Croissance team is very proud and extremely motivated to be associated with the Gaia Impact, I&P and Schneider Electric team".

Jeremy Hajdenberg, Co-CEO of Investisseurs & Partenaires: "Impressed by the dynamism and expertise of the Gaia Impact team, we are determined to bring I&P’s complementary perspective and to implement numerous synergies on the ground. Acting in favor of renewable energies in Africa is an obvious urgency and we are proud to participate, with Schneider Electric and Capital Croissance, in this initiative supporting entrepreneurs who are transforming Africa and implementing innovative solutions every day".

16 March 2023: Ignite Power, a leading provider of solar solutions across Africa, announced today the acquisition of Pawame, an Abu-Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM) headquartered distributor of Solar Home Systems. This acquisition reinforces Ignite Power’s commitment to bringing affordable and sustainable energy solutions to millions across the SSA region, and creating impact at a continental scale.

Pawame has been providing off-grid solar solutions to mostly rural homes and small businesses in Kenya since 2016, electrifying 30,000 households through an affordable Pay-As-You-Go financing model. The acquisition will enable Ignite Power to expand its reach to the Kenyan market and grow its impact to millions more. “We are thrilled to welcome Pawame into the Ignite Power family,” said Yariv Cohen, CEO of Ignite Power. “With this acquisition, we are expanding our presence to Kenya and growing our ability to provide affordable and sustainable energy solutions to even more people in Africa.“

The acquisition of Pawame is another milestone for Ignite Power, which already directly impacted 2 million people in 12,000 villages across 4 African countries, utilizing its proven models and advanced technologies for smart and efficient operations. With said models and technologies for last-mile operation, Ignite Power has been instrumental in bringing distributed infra-tech solutions to remote areas of the continent.

“We believe that access to reliable and affordable energy is a basic human right”, says Cohen. “We remain committed to making this a reality for more communities across Africa, and are excited to pave the way to a cleaner, more inclusive and sustainable future for millions across Kenya in the coming years.”

This acquisition is part of Ignite Power’s ongoing commitment to expanding its footprint in Africa through organic growth and strategic acquisitions, leading the way to sustainable impact at scale.

“We have been supporting Pawame since 2018, and we believe this acquisition will accelerate Ignite Power’s growth and make it one of the leading companies in Kenya, while also supporting existing customers and employees. This opportunity has the immense potential to multiply the impact, which Pawame has been trying to achieve in the last 5-6 years.” Said Arivazhagan G D, Partner at SIMA Funds, which is the largest lender to Pawame and the lead arranger of this deal.

“Pawame has brightened the lives of over one hundred fifty thousand people in Kenya by making solar energy affordable to low-income households. We are extremely pleased that this legacy of impact will continue and be further built upon under Ignite Power, and look forward to seeing them further improve the quality of life in rural Africa”, said Alexandre Allegue, Pawame’s Chairman and Founder.

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About Ignite Power: Ignite Power connects last-mile, hardest-to-reach communities across Sub- Saharan Africa to clean, sustainable, and affordable solar solutions. The company’s mission is to alleviate extreme poverty in bottom-of-the-pyramid societies through solar power, technology, and inclusive financing schemes.

8 March 2023: Nuru SASU (Nuru), the company behind Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)’s first solar PV metrogrid, is on track to build 13.7MWp of isolated solar-hybrid grids by mid-2024 after securing an initial USD1.5 million from investors in a convertible note round ahead of the close of its Series B funding round.

Renewable Energy Performance Platform (REPP), Proparco and E3 Capital have each decided to invest USD500k in Nuru, bridging a financing gap to bolster the company’s USD 25 million Series B equity fundraise. The residual funds will be invested by an impressive consortium of international investors at financial close. The raise will help to accelerate the implementation of three nationally strategic late-stage development projects in Goma, Kindu and Bunia, with an aggregate installed capacity of 13.7MWp.

REPP is funded by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and managed by Camco. Proparco is the private sector financing arm of Agence Française de Développement Group (AFD Group), and E3 Capital is a leading investor in low-carbon early-stage companies.

According to the World Bank, approximately 19% of DRC’s population has access to electricity, making the Central African country one of the least electrified in the world. Making things worse, DRC’s grid power generation comes predominantly from hydropower plants, which are coming under mounting pressure due to a lack of maintenance and the increased incidence of drought due to climate change.

Nuru and its investors endeavor to aid in closing the energy access deficit while directly diversifying and decentralising DRC’s energy mix, thereby supporting DRC’s Strategic National Development Plan (SNDP 2019-2023) goal for increased renewable energy capacity.

To date, the company has installed 1.7MWp of operating capacity, providing commercial and industrial (C&I), retail and residential customers in large off-grid towns with reliable, affordable and clean electricity via solar PV installations (with battery storage and diesel back up) and isolated distribution networks.

In addition to the three late-stage development projects, Nuru has a further 35MWp in its current active pipeline, which it expects to be fully commissioned within the next three years. Once both phases have been completed, the company will be providing first-time clean energy access to over 230,000 people as well as approximately 5,300 C&I businesses and social and public institutions, most of whom currently rely on diesel gensets for their power.

British Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Emily Maltman, said: “It is great to see how UK investment in Nuru is helping to accelerate its solar projects in Goma, Kindu and Bunia. The UK is committed to helping improve access to clean energy in DRC – to create jobs, power public services and improve livelihoods.”

Ben Hugues, who heads REPP at Camco, said: “Nuru has the potential to deliver truly widescale and transformational impact in one of the world’s poorest countries.

“REPP’s investment alongside Proparco and E3 Capital will not just lead to greater emissions reductions, but also higher levels of economic activity and improved living standards for hundreds of thousands of people through clean, reliable and affordable energy access. At the same time, it will demonstrate DRC’s improving investment conditions and give confidence to other funders to invest.”

Jonathan Shaw, co-founder and CEO of Nuru, said: “Nuru is thrilled to have partners like REPP, Proparco, and E3 Capital empowering us to deliver life-changing energy access in an extremely challenging environment. REPP, Proparco, and E3 Capital have demonstrated tangible commitments to helping Nuru achieve our mission of delivering reliable, affordable, renewable energy to 5 million people in the DR Congo.”

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About Nuru: Nuru, Swahili for “light,” designs, deploys and operates renewable energy powered metrogrids in strategic urban zones of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Nuru was the first company in DRC to deploy a solar mini-grid, built the largest fully off-grid solar hybrid metrogrid in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2020, and is now seeking to provide 5 million clients with world-class connectivity in the country. For more information, visit: https://nuru.cd/.

About REPP: The Renewable Energy Performance Platform (REPP), managed by Camco, works to mobilise private sector development activity – and investment – in small to medium-sized projects (typically up to 25MW) in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is supported with funding from the UK’s International Climate Finance through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and, to date, has agreed contracts with 42 renewable energy projects across 18 countries, employing seven different technologies, from SHS and PV mini-grids to onshore wind and run-of-river hydro. For more information, visit: https://repp.energy.

About Camco: Camco is a specialist climate and impact fund manager, leading the transition in emerging markets. We offer clean, secure investments, pairing the conscience of a development bank with the agility of a private company. Camco is an Accredited Entity of the Green Climate Fund and is authorised and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority. The company has offices in Accra, Auckland, Helsinki, Johannesburg, London, Nairobi, Singapore, Sydney and Toronto. For more information, visit: https://camco.fm.

About Proparco: Proparco is the private sector financing arm of Agence Française de Développement Group (AFD Group). It has been promoting sustainable economic, social and environmental development for 45 years. Proparco provides funding and support to both businesses and financial institutions in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Its action focuses on the key development sectors: infrastructure, mainly for renewable energies, agribusiness, financial institutions, health and education. Its operations aim to strengthen the contribution of private players to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the international community in 2015. To this end, Proparco finances companies, whose activity contributes to creating jobs and decent incomes, providing essential goods and services and combating climate change. For a World in Common. For more information, visit: http://www.proparco.fr/en.

About E3 Capital: E3 Capital is a leading investor in low-carbon early-stage companies developing innovative business models that are digitised, decentralised, and decarbonised. E3 Capital has a young and diverse team, committed to the future of the low carbon economy in Africa and the emerging world. With a combined investment experience of 40 years, the company is uniquely positioned to help companies grow and scale, without compromising sustainability. E3 Capital partners with forward-thinking entrepreneurs endeavouring to bridge the gap between climate transition and growth in emerging and frontier markets with energy as the enabler of these products and services. For more information, visit: https://e3-cap.com/.

8 March 2023: Inspired Evolution Managers Limited, a Pan-African climate-centred private equity firm specialising in clean energy infrastructure and energy and resource-efficiency growth investments, successfully achieved the first closing of its third fund, Evolution III Fund, on March 3, 2023.

Evolution III closed at USD 199.4 million in conditional commitments from seven international investors, allowing a further 12–18 months window to reach its target close of USD 400 million in capital commitments.

Inspired Evolution has been involved in financing the development and operations of more than 2 GW of renewable energy infrastructure-type generation projects and multiple growth equity investments across Sub-Saharan Africa since 2007. The firm focuses on key climate-driven principal investment themes, namely clean energy infrastructure, energy access, energy and resource efficiency and the value chains that support them.

Inspired Evolution launched the Mauritian-domiciled Evolution III Fund in 2022, which is targeting USD 400 million in capital commitments and is expected to comprise existing (predominantly Development Financial Institutions) investors and new global and regional institutional investors, endowments, and family offices.

Investors in Evolution III’s first closing include the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Dutch Development Bank FMO, the African Development Bank, the Finnish Fund for Industrial Cooperation (FinnFund), the Emerging Markets Climate Action Fund (EMCAF), Swedfund International AG, and the Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (SIFEM).

Wayne Keast, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Inspired Evolution, said, "We are a private equity firm with 16 years of on-the-ground African investment experience in clean energy and climate finance investing. We have made 21 investments to date in our two Evolution clean energy private equity funds, and we have exited 16. Achieving this first closing within such a short time period is a great validation of our investment thesis, active investment management approach, and the track record we’ve built.”

Christopher Clarke, also Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Inspired Evolution, added: "There's been a growing investor preference for climate-centred, socially responsible investments that follow strong international governance guidelines, aligned to the Paris Agreement and UN's Sustainable Development Goals. Institutional investors seek trusted investment managers with strong fiduciary principles that can deliver measurable, lasting climate and social impacts while achieving superior returns. This first closing also speaks to our professional investment team's pedigree and deep skill set."

Evolution III offers next-generation energy transition investment strategies and will look to invest in traditional utility-scale, grid-connected IPP platforms and projects, decentralised commercial and industrial (C&I) private offtake opportunities, off-grid solutions and energy-as-a-service (EaaS) micro-grid infrastructure-type offerings. It will also look to invest growth equity into energy and resource-efficiency, technology-based businesses that ‘do more with less’ and reduce resource footprints. Evolution III will provide investors with long-term capital growth and yield by taking significant minority and controlling equity and equity-related stakes, predominantly in renewable energy platforms.

The investment case:

Africa has tremendous solar and wind potential and vast hydropower resources. The funding needed to facilitate Africa's energy transition to a net-zero energy mix by 2050 is estimated to be around USD2.8 trillion. For Africa to achieve its climate action and energy SDGs, its generation capacity must be doubled by 2030 and multiplied five-fold by 2050.

Since the adoption of the Paris Agreement and the recent COP 26 UN Climate Change Conference held in Glasgow at the end of 2021, markets have been lifted by the accelerated adoption of new low-carbon energy commitments and policies by African member states. Meanwhile, rural households and small-, micro-, and medium enterprise (SMME) consumers with growing energy access needs have accelerated the addressable market for affordable and reliable clean energy technology-based solutions.

This reflects a vast investment opportunity to catalyse the growth in the renewable energy space across the African continent. With increased electrification of rural areas and additional funding for renewable and off-grid projects, renewables will systematically replace bioenergy and fossil fuels as the primary energy source.

New opportunities for private equity investment to plug the funding gap have opened up as capital-constrained public utilities have pulled back their levels of investment.

Fund focus:

The Fund will contribute to decarbonisation by replacing ageing and inefficient carbon-intensive power plants (predominantly coal thermal and heavy fuel oil (HFO)) and contribute to building least-cost, low-carbon, small- to large-sized grid-connected renewable and sustainable energy generation capacity.

In addition, the Fund will target new high-growth market segments, including commercial and industrial (C&I) solar and storage solutions and digital infrastructure, predominantly for private investors. It will promote energy access to rural communities, businesses, and industries by accelerating innovative fintech business models across off-grid, mini-grid and micro-grid markets.

Evolution III will look to complement the traditional grid-connected projects while bolstering its exposure to energy-access solutions in rural areas via mobile money payment platforms and pivoting to energy-as-a-service (EaaS) micro-grid market offerings, promoting smart cities and efficient industry.

The remaining capital allocation is expected to be invested as growth equity into technology-based companies active across eligible high-growth sectors, including agriculture, waste and wastewater, logistics and cold chain management, energy and resource-efficient manufacturing and other energy-centric supply chains.

The Fund will target around 10 to 15 investments over an investment period of five years.

It will target established growth companies and back investments into greenfield projects and platforms and select eligible brownfield projects with a high probability of conversion success and where bankability criteria are met.

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About Inspired Evolution and Evolution Funds: Inspired Evolution, investment advisor to Evolution I and Evolution II Funds, and currently raising Evolution III Fund, is a specialised clean energy infrastructure, energy access and resource efficiency investment advisory firm that offers a broad African footprint with headquarters in Cape Town and strategically located international, regional and country offices in London, Nairobi, Abidjan and Grand Bay in Mauritius.

Over the past 16 years, Inspired Evolution has been involved in financing the development and operations of more than 2+ GW of renewable energy infrastructure generation projects and multiple growth equity investments across Africa. Evolution III Fund’s first close investors include the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Dutch Development Bank FMO, the African Development Bank, the Finnish Fund for Industrial Cooperation, Swedfund International AG, the Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (SIFEM), and the Emerging Markets Climate Action Fund (EMCAF) – an innovative blended finance fund of funds created in partnership by Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI) and the EIB, Evolution III Fund is expected to comprise the majority of existing investors to predecessor Evolution I and II funds, as well as new global and regional commercial institutional investors, endowments and family offices. For more information, visit: www.inspiredevolution.co.za.

6 March 2023: Aiming to accelerate public-private partnerships (PPP) that can achieve universal electrification in Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Husk Power Systems today issued an invitation to governments in Sub-Saharan Africa to partner in scaling the deployment of renewable energy minigrids in off-grid, weak-grid and under-the-grid communities.

Announced during the Private Sector Forum at the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5), Husk said it welcomed expressions of interest from national and sub-national governments.

Elements of the company’s proposed PPP:

• Husk to finance the building of 200 minigrids in one or more LDCs in Sub-Saharan Africa;
• Husk to own and operate the minigrids for the lifetime of the projects;
• Husk to select the 200 communities based on its business model and to have the ability to charge cost-reflective tariffs that are affordable for customers;
• Interested governments to provide a 20- to 25-year concession to Husk;
• If required, interested governments and/or their funding partners to provide viability gap support for the initial phase of minigrid operations.

The need to accelerate electrification in LDCs is enormous. Lack of electricity impacts hundreds of millions of lives and countless small businesses. In the 33 LDCs in Africa, the electrification rate is only 36%. For rural areas in LDCs, the number of newly connected customers each year needs to increase from 13.7 million to 41 million to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG7) – access to modern, reliable, clean and affordable electricity for all by 2030.

Under its proposed PPP, in one country Husk estimates that 200 of its minigrids would benefit up to 1 million people and 10,000 small businesses, power hundreds of schools and health clinics and avoid 15,000 tons of CO2 annually by displacing diesel and gasoline generation.

In 2022, Husk became the first and only minigrid company to sign a UN Energy Compact in support of SDG7. In its UN Energy Compact, Husk pledged to build up to 5,000 minigrids that would benefit more than 11 million people.

Husk currently has more than 200 minigrids in operation in India, Nigeria and Tanzania and expects to double that number to 400 within the next 12 months.

Referring to today’s announcement, Manoj Sinha, Husk’s Co-Founder and CEO, said: “As LDC governments in Sub-Saharan Africa look to roll out integrated energy systems that will be both fiscally sound and climate resilient, Husk is ready for action. We have the scale and a proven business model, and it’s now time for SDG7-focused public-private partnerships to move from pilot phase to full-fledged market interventions that can achieve radical scale.”

“By expanding access to modern energy services, renewable energy can help lift millions of people out of poverty, improve health and education, create jobs and income opportunities for people in the Least Developed Countries,” said Heidi Schroderus-Fox, Director of the UN Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States and Executive Secretary of the Fifth UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5). “It is encouraging to see that the private sector is stepping up at LDC5 with innovative solutions to achieve SDG7 in the Least Developed Countries.”

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About Husk Power Systems: Founded in 2008, Husk Power Systems is the leading net-zero energy services company in rural Asia and Africa, and operator of the largest fleet of community solar microgrids across the two continents. Its smart and sustainable solutions accelerate access to clean, modern and affordable electricity that has the ability to catalyze socio-economic development. Husk’s focus on the customer meets the growing aspirations of businesses and households, while its grid-integratable solution supports national integrated electrification plans. For more information, visit huskpowersystems.com.

27 February 2023: Solar mini grids can provide high-quality uninterrupted renewable electricity to underserved villages and communities across Sub-Saharan Africa and be the least-cost solution to close the energy access gap on the continent by 2030.

Climate action efforts can tap solar mini grids that offer a lower greenhouse gas emission alternative compared to diesel-fueled systems and kerosene-based appliances. The World Bank’s Mini Grids for Half a Billion People: Market Outlook and Handbook for Decision Makers notes that to realize the full potential of solar mini grids, governments and industry must work together to systematically identify mini grid opportunities, drive costs down, and overcome barriers to financing.

“Kenya has deployed mini grids to serve communities that are not connected to the main grid,” said Mr Davis Chirchir, Cabinet Secretary Ministry. “Currently we have about 62 mini grids that are fully operational and 28, which are under construction. We hope to deploy more mini grids to close the energy access gap and ensure universal access to electricity by 2030.”

In Sub-Saharan Africa, 568 million people still lack access to electricity. Globally, nearly 8 out of 10 people without electricity live in Africa. At the current rate of progress, 595 million Africans will remain unconnected in 2030.

“While Africa remains the least electrified continent, it also has the biggest potential for solar mini grid deployment,” said Gabriela Elizondo Azuela, Manager of the World Bank’s Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP). “Solar mini grids can reach populations today that would otherwise wait years to be reached by the grid. They have the potential to transform the power sector in Sub-Saharan Africa. Through World Bank operations and advice to governments, ESMAP is helping take mini grids from a niche to a mainstream solution.”

The deployment of solar mini grids has markedly accelerated in Sub-Saharan Africa, from around 500 installed in 2010 to more than 3,000 installed today, and a further 9,000 planned for development over the next few years. This is the result of falling costs of key components, the introduction of new digital solutions, a large and expanding cohort of highly capable mini grid developers and growing economies of scale. In Africa, mini grids are on track to provide power at lower cost than many utilities. The cost of electricity produced by mini grids could be as low as $0.20/kWh by 2030, making it the least-cost solution for more than 60 percent of the population.

Important progress has been made in several African countries to accelerate the deployment of mini grids. In Nigeria, for example, a market-driven approach to mini grid development under the World Bank-supported National Electrification Project has catalyzed the deployment of more than 100 new solar-powered mini grids. In several countries such as Ethiopia and Zambia, new regulations and policy directives are making mini grids more attractive for private sector investment. In Kenya, a combination of geospatial planning, favorable policies and regulations, and a robust business model based on public-private partnership is underpinning the World Bank-supported Kenya Off-Grid Solar Access Project, which is targeting almost 150 new mini grids in areas with low electricity access rates.

Further acceleration is needed, however, to meet Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7). Powering 380 million people in Africa by 2030 will require the construction of more than 160,000 mini grids at a cumulative cost of $91 billion. At the current pace, only around 12,000 new mini grids serving 46 million people will be built by 2030 at a total investment cost of approximately $9 billion.

The World Bank has committed more than $1.4 billion to mini grids over the next seven years, through 38 projects in 29 countries. The investment plans of the World Bank’s portfolio include the deployment of 3,000 mini grids by 2029, with the expectation of bringing electricity to more than 13 million people. This investment commitment is expected to crowd in more than $1 billion of co-financing from private sector, government, and development partners. In countries where the World Bank has an investment commitment in mini grids, the Bank’s investment represents on average about 25 percent of the total investment in mini grids in each country from governments, the private sector, and development partners.

Produced by the World Bank’s Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP), the book, the Mini Grids for Half a Billion People: Market Outlook and Handbook for Decision Makers, identifies five market drivers that would help the mini grid sector achieve its full market and development potential:

1. Reducing the cost of electricity from solar hybrid mini grids to $0.20/kWh by 2030, which would put life-changing power in the hands of half a billion people for just $10 per month;
2. Increasing the pace of deployment to 2,000 mini grids per country per year, by building portfolios of modern mini grids instead of one-off projects;
3. Providing reliable electricity service to customers and communities would generate the demand for 3 million income-generating appliances and machines and expand services at 200,000 schools and clinics;
4. Leveraging development partner funding and government investment to “crowd in” private-sector finance, potentially raising $127 billion in cumulative investment from all sources for mini grids by 2030;
5. Establishing enabling mini grid business environments in key access-deficit countries through light-handed and adaptive regulations, supportive policies, and reductions in bureaucratic red tape.

The handbook is the World Bank’s most comprehensive and authoritative publication on mini grids to date.

24 February 2023: Economies of scale and speed of deployment have been two major hurdles for the minigrid industry. Today, Husk Power announced new benchmarks that erased both barriers: it became the first company to own and operate more than 200 community solar minigrids in Asia and Africa. And it also averaged a rollout of 16 minigrids per month.

The two achievements follow closely on Husk’s announcement in January 2023 of being the first minigrid company to achieve corporate profitability.

Taken together, the trifecta of industry milestones – a profitable business model, a large portfolio of assets, and the ability to deploy minigrids in previously unseen numbers – are proof that the minigrid industry is scaling, with Husk Power, which pioneered the industry 15 years ago, showing the path forward.

Today, at an event in India’s Uttar Pradesh state attended by government leaders, business partners and Husk executives, 16 new minigrids – all of which were built within a one month period – were inaugurated, taking Husk’s portfolio over the 200 mark.

Husk expects to double again its portfolio to 400 minigrids by the end of 2023. At the same time, Husk’s excellence and know-how in project deployment is being transferred to its operations in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, where the company already has 12 sites in operation, with plans for up to 100 by 2023 and 500 by 2026.

Referring to today’s announcement, Manoj Sinha, Husk’s Co-Founder and CEO, said: “These latest milestones confirm our confidence – for Husk and for the industry as a whole – in scaling community solar minigrids and making a major contribution to achieving universal electrification in Asia and Africa. It took Husk four years to grow 10X and reach 200 minigrids, and we are now able to double our portfolio to 400 in just one year and begin our next 10X journey.”

In 2022, Husk became the first and only minigrid company to sign a UN Energy Compact, which included a commitment to building 5,000 minigrids by 2030 and displacing 700 million gallons of fuel for diesel generators, which currently dominate economies in Asia and Africa.

According to a Minigrid Industry Roadmap released in 2022, rate of deployment “may be the most daunting challenge” for the industry, noting that 10 companies with 10 times the current maximum rate of deployment are needed to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7) – access to modern, affordable, clean, reliable energy for all.

Husk’s speed of deployment is the result of achieving efficiencies across multiple aspects of its business: site scoring and selection, land leasing and permitting, supply chain management, logistics and warehousing, construction and digital automation.

Since 2019, Husk has raised $40 million ($25 million in equity and $15 million in low-cost, long-term debt) and grew 10X despite being hit by Covid and other global market disruptions, demonstrating efficient deployment of capital and business resiliency.

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About Husk Power Systems: Founded in 2008, Husk Power Systems is the leading net-zero energy services company in rural Asia and Africa, and operator of the largest fleet of community solar microgrids. Its smart and sustainable solutions accelerate access to clean, modern and affordable electricity and catalyze socio-economic development. Husk’s focus on the customer meets the growing aspirations of businesses and households, while its grid-integratable solution supports national electrification plans. For more information, visit: huskpowersystems.com.

23 February 2023: The Universal Energy Facility (UEF) – a results-based financing facility managed by Sustainable Energy for All – has announced that it will provide grants to renewable energy companies who applied to have their projects financed as part of the facility’s Stand-alone Solar for Productive Use programme in Nigeria.

These companies will now begin construction on their proposed solar projects, all of which are designed to connect businesses and services to a clean, affordable and reliable electricity source.

These projects will span most states in Nigeria and be completed within the next 12 months. Together, they will connect approximately 3,500 businesses, markets, shopping malls, cold-storage facilities, clinics, schools, and other productive uses of energy, which are uses that support economic activity and community infrastructure.

As stand-alone solar energy projects, they will alleviate the need for businesses and services to rely on expensive, polluting fossil fuel generators as their source of power. The UEF estimates that approximately 5,400 tons of CO2 equivalent per year will be saved once all of the proposed projects are implemented.

“With this programme in Nigeria, the Universal Energy Facility will demonstrate the enabling power that sustainable energy can have on local economic development and climate action,” said Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All “Solar projects supported by the facility will give businesses clean and affordable electricity to help them scale up, create jobs, and replace polluting power sources.”

Last year, the Government of Nigeria launched its Energy Transition Plan showing how the country will achieve universal energy access by 2030 and net-zero emissions by mid-century, as well as the finance required to meet these goals. The UEF is contributing to the plan’s finance targets for the power sector by providing grants that companies can leverage to attract additional finance for clean energy.

“The Universal Energy Facility will provide grant payments to enable solar companies to expand their operations to small and medium-sized enterprises across Nigeria, while crowding-in additional private capital,” said Prof. Yemi Osinbajo SAN, Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. “Projects supported by the Universal Energy Facility will help grow businesses and create jobs, making them key contributors to our Energy Transition Plan.”

Hon. Goddy Jedy Agba, Minister of State for Power of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, said “This Universal Energy Facility programme is a practical demonstration of targeted investment in our power sector and in our overall objective to provide energy access to all of the Nigerian people.”

The Stand-alone Solar for Productive Use programme in Nigeria opened for applications in August 2022 and received expressions of interest from hundreds of energy developers.

“Within just a few months of opening this programme in Nigeria, we are now at the point where grantees have been selected and companies can start building transformative stand-alone solar projects,” said Anita Otubu, Senior Director, Universal Energy Facility. “The Universal Energy Facility is proving the effectiveness of results-based finance to catalyse energy development at speed and scale.”

Simon Harford, CEO, Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, said, ““The global energy transition must power both people and planet, enabling economic opportunities and displacing carbon-intensive technologies. The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) is proud to support the Universal Energy Facility’s efforts to offer targeted, country-specific solutions in those communities most affected by energy poverty and climate change. The UEF has the potential to become a unifying force and the platform of choice for those interested in results-based financing.”

This is the first grant funding window under the Stand-alone Solar for Productive Use programme in Nigeria. The UEF has identified many additional viable projects for financing in future waves.

More information on the Stand-Alone Solar for Productive Use programme and the UEF are available here.

22 February 2023: A presidential roundtable on the side-lines of the 36th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union has called for the acceleration of financing for energy access in Africa with clear targets and steps for ensuring the achievement of universal energy access by 2030.

The event which was organised by the African Union Commission (AUC) and the World Bank in collaboration with the Union of the Comoros was attended by the Presidents of Comoros and the Republic of Madagascar and ministers of the Republic of Namibia, the Republic of Congo, the Republic of Malawi, high-level representatives of the African Development Bank, the World Bank, international and regional institutions, and development partners. It took place on 18th February 2023.

In his keynote address, the President of the Union of the Comoros and the Chairperson of the African Union for 2023, H.E. Azali Assoumani shed light on the irony of energy poverty on a continent that is richly endowed with vast energy resources that remain untapped. President Assoumani also highlighted the energy situation in most African island nations and noted that continental approaches can complement national initiatives to boost energy access. Using the Geothermal Risk Mitigation Facility (GRMF) as an example, and Comoros as the beneficiary of a USD 9 million GRMF grant, H.E. Assoumani demonstrated how continental initiatives can augment Member States’ efforts. “Accelerating the implementation of Agenda 2063 flagship projects such as the Grand Inga Dam Hydro project, and the energy projects under the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) is critical in enhancing energy access, regional integration, fostering economic transformation, and climate resilience”, underscored the President.

The African Single Electricity Market (AfSEM) was noted to be a key strategic element of facilitating energy access and enhancing energy security in Africa and, therefore, the AU Member States, regional economic communities and their specialised institutions were urged to play their part in facilitating its operationalisation.

President of the Republic of Madagascar H.E. Andry Rajoelina, who also chaired the high-level panel discussion emphasised the need to invest in clean sources to fast-track universal energy access in Africa underlining that energy is every African leader’s priority. “Addressing Energy Access is not negotiable for any leader, and we need now to move from words to action,” said, President Rajoelina, adding that Madagascar aspires to achieve 100% energy access in the shortest possible time mainly by harnessing renewables.

On behalf of AUC Chairperson H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, H.E. Dr Monique Nsanzabaganwa, warmly welcomed and commended the presence of the dignitaries which, according to the Deputy Chairperson, is a clear demonstration of the importance they attach to energy access and security in Africa.

In her opening remarks H.E. Dr Amani Abou-Zeid, African Union Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy accentuated that energy is a bedrock for the success of every development sector and thus increased effort is required in ensuring affordable and reliable access. Dr Amani stated that “Africa’s key priorities and initiatives including industrialisation, AfCFTA, agricultural development, food security, poverty alleviation, job creation and regional integration, as well as the achievement of the SDGs, are all dependent on modern and universal energy access and services.”

Africa needs 25 billion USD in investment annually to meet its energy targets. The deliberations in the high-level panel underscored the role of partnerships in the area of finance, knowledge and technology transfer to help speed up existing and new initiatives to overcome constraints that African countries face in their quest for energy development.

Speaking on behalf of the World Bank, Ms Victoria Kwakwa and Mr Ousmane Diagana, respective Vice-Presidents for Eastern and Southern Africa, and Western and Central Africa, emphasized the World Bank’s commitment to partnering on this agenda. “The World Bank remains committed to helping countries strengthen their institutional and regulatory frameworks and develop strong utilities – both of which are essential to a thriving power sector,” said Kwakwa and Diagana.

In her concluding remarks, Commissioner Abou-Zeid assured the gathering that the AUC remains committed and ready to implement the recommendations made during the deliberations. “The various programmes that the Commission is already coordinating will be accelerated and aligned with the priority of achieving universal energy access by 2030,” reiterated the Commissioner.

16 February 2023: Merrin Investors is happy to announce the completion of an investment round led by the company to support Ignite Power‘s growth and expansion throughout Africa and provide millions with sustainable, advanced solutions to their everyday needs.

In addition to the investment, Seth Merrin will join Ignite Power’s board of directors alongside Peter Feinberg, former head of Oppenheimer’s Equity Trading. The addition of Merrin and Feinberg to the board will bring a wealth of expertise, strategic insight, and experience in driving impact and promoting sustainability to the company as it continues to grow and expand its impact throughout Africa.

“We are happy to expand our support in Ignite Power, as it continues to grow and make a difference in the world,” says Merrin. “Investing in Ignite means supporting a company that is not only revolutionizing the distributed infrastructure sector but also making a significant impact at scale. With its proven models of operations, Ignite is showing the world that it is possible to create positive change on a large scale while still being financially successful.”

Today, more than 700 million people are still living without access to electricity; According to a report from 2022 by the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association, Off-Grid Solar is estimated to be the most cost-effective, feasible solution to electrify more than half of the currently unconnected households. The sector is expected to set record-breaking investments in the coming years, as it recorded a 10% increase in sales in 2021, indicating a nascent recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ignite Power is a pan-African provider of solar-based, distributed infra-tech solutions, such as solar home systems, solar pumps, clean cooking solutions, and more. To date, the company has already directly empowered 2 million people in 5 countries through clean home electricity, created 3,500 jobs, and saved more than 250,000 tonnes of GHG emissions.

“We are thrilled to welcome Seth and Peter to our board,” said Yariv Cohen, CEO of Ignite Power. “Their unique, strategic perspective and unparalleled experience will be invaluable as we work to bring our distributed infra-tech solutions to even more people and communities in need. Their passion for sustainability and commitment to creating a better world will be a driving force as we work to create impact at a different scale”.

With advanced, proven technologies and the most capital-efficient operational model in the sector, Ignite Power is expanding its footprint across the SSA region while growing its product offerings to create a positive impact at scale. The current investment round will support the company’s plans to empower 100 million people in the next few years through organic growth and strategic acquisitions.

“This investment round, especially in today’s market, strengthens our belief that Africa’s infrastructure sector presents the best opportunity for a successful capital investment and impact,” says Cohen. “Working to create impact at a pan-African scale requires the best people possible in every position, and we are honored to have such world-leading supporters on our side and to keep paving the way to a cleaner, more inclusive future.”

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About Ignite Power: Ignite Power connects last-mile, hardest-to-reach communities across Sub- Saharan Africa to clean, sustainable, and affordable solar solutions. The company’s mission is to alleviate extreme poverty in bottom-of-the-pyramid societies through solar power, technology, and inclusive financing schemes.

About Seth Merrin: A renowned entrepreneur, business leader, philanthropist, and author, Seth Merrin has spent his entire career reinventing how global financial markets work by implementing advanced technology solutions to drive efficiencies and eliminate barriers for investors. Seth was the Founder and Executive Chairman of Liquidnet, a global institutional trading and investing network connecting more than 1,000 of the world’s top asset management firms across 45 financial markets and six continents. Seth orchestrated Liquidnet’s expansion into AI-based investment decision support, focusing on delivering actionable market intelligence and insight to fund managers worldwide. In 2007, Seth and his late wife Anne Heyman founded the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village (ASYV), a home, community, and high school for hundreds of orphans and vulnerable children in Rwanda.

About Merrin Investors: Merrin Investors LLC is a family investment office focused on investing in companies that disrupt industries with the use of technology. Managed by Seth Merrin, on behalf of his family, he strives to make a positive impact on the world through impact investing, strategic partnerships, and innovation.

2 February 2023: Today, RMI, founded as Rocky Mountain Institute, collaborated with Nigerian-based private minigrid developers Nayo Tropical Technology Ltd. and Prado Power Ltd. to announce the rollout of the first cohort of Sharing the Power’s community-centric minigrid projects. The objective is to prove that community-centered interventions in minigrid development can improve system performance while increasing socioeconomic development and empowering minigrid communities.

The proposed projects will achieve this win-win scenario by developing and implementing measures that will increase the community’s ownership and develop inclusive governance allowing for the equitable distribution of benefits among community members. In addition, RMI will integrate these projects into Nigeria’s existing minigrid programs to support ongoing national electrification efforts.

“Nayo Tropical Technologies believes Sharing the Power community-centric minigrids project collaboration with RMI will open an innovative and scalable ownership model, capable of catalyzing minigrid deployment across Africa,” said Okenwa Anayo Nas, CEO, Nayo Tropical Technology.

In Nigeria, minigrids have emerged as a cost-effective option for reliable electricity, creating exciting opportunities to increase the pace of electricity access. However, estimates from the Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency (REA) show almost 90 million people in Nigeria do not have access to grid electricity. Consequently, the country’s Energy Transition Plan is poised to advance the energy access agenda and seeks to add 30,000 MW of newly installed capacity by 2030, from at least 30% of renewable energy. This includes minigrids — self-contained energy generation and distribution systems — which usually operate at the community scale.

“We are pleased and excited about these minigrids projects in Nigeria. Having communities drive these efforts — providing examples for other communities — is exactly the model that we envisioned when we partnered with RMI to help fund this work,” said Marieke Rodenhuis, Deputy Head of the Charity Department, Dutch Postcode Lottery. “We are very happy to be able to support this effort thanks to our lottery players.”

Through its community-centric approach, Sharing the Power is well-positioned to leverage the momentum of the national plan to drive innovation and change. Community participation during minigrid design and implementation as well as inclusion of community-perceived opportunities for economic growth and increased productivity are critical to improving system impact.

“We see the community-centric minigrid model as a decisive step toward empowering rural communities while ensuring that minigrids unlock long-term local economic development and resilience,” said Suleiman Babamanu, RMI Nigeria Program Director.

RMI has identified five key elements to guide the design of community-centric projects:

1. Community ownership and/or co-ownership
2. Governance structure
3. Sharing of benefits
4. Gender equity and social inclusion (GESI)
5. Structure to safeguard community investment

In addition, Africa’s inherent local leadership structures — including religious groups, local associations (e.g., agricultural), and cooperatives — can feed on the success of new projects or save stranded assets. These dynamics and underlying characteristics can ensure project success by generating community buy-in, thus increasing project sustainability.

“In the middle of all the activity across our operations — technical, administrative, commercial — we never lose sight of a core goal, which is to empower the communities we operate in, lift them out of poverty, engender a better quality of life,” said Washima Mede, CEO, Prado Power. “That is why we are excited to be part of RMI’s Sharing the Power initiative, where we strive to deploy an innovative approach that goes beyond mere energy access and provides additional benefits that can form the foundational blocks for sustainable communities (SDG11).”

Partnering communities of the first cohort include Mokoloki in Ogun State, Tungan Jika and Aninigi in Niger State, and Mbiabet Ikot Esieyere in Akwa Ibom State.

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About Nayo Tropical Technologies: Nayo Tropical Technology (NTT) has been at the forefront of renewable energy technology in Nigeria for the past two decades. NTT is a vertically integrated cleantech company with core activities in renewable energy, utilities, e-mobility, and renewable energy product development. With a portfolio of 10 operational minigrids providing energy to over 11,290 homes and businesses (about 55,000 people) across Nigeria, NTT has a robust pipeline of 23 new isolated, interconnected, and commercial and industrial solar projects planned for commissioning in 2023 to serve over 25,000 homes and businesses.

About The Dutch Postcode Lottery: The Dutch Postcode Lottery is a marketing-driven organization with a social purpose. Lottery players win prizes and support charities. Since 1989, more than €12 billion has been raised for charities and good causes, near and far, that help contribute to a fairer, greener, and healthier world. The Dutch Postcode Lottery is part of the Postcode Lottery Group, the third largest private charity donor in the world. For more information, visit: www.postcodelotterygroup.com.

About RMI: Founded as Rocky Mountain Institute, is an independent nonprofit founded in 1982 that transforms global energy systems through market-driven solutions to align with a 1.5°C future and secure a clean, prosperous, zero-carbon future for all. We work in the world’s most critical geographies and engage businesses, policymakers, communities, and NGOs to identify and scale energy system interventions that will cut greenhouse gas emissions at least 50 percent by 2030. RMI has staff in over 25 countries, including teams based in Abuja and Lagos, Nigeria, and offices in Beijing; Basalt and Boulder, Colorado; New York City; Oakland, California; and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit: www.rmi.org.

About Prado Power: Over the past six years, Prado Power has provided cutting-edge renewable energy solutions for commercial, industrial, residential customers across urban and rural areas in Nigeria. With over 2MW of solar PV deployments and a focus on the productive use of minigrids in rural communities in tandem with agriculture hubs, Prado Power has a vision to resolve the region’s energy deficit and significantly empower smallholders economically through agro/energy deployments in rural communities. In pursuit of this, Prado Power is in constant engagement with internal and external stakeholders, including regulatory agencies, fund managers, and technical partners to pull together resources to make this vision a visible reality.