Previous investor in the Nigerian solar energy company — Zola Electric — SunFunder has secured $12 million from Swedfund, the Swedish development finance institution. The new investment would be added to SunFunder’s Solar Energy Transformation (SET) Fund. The investment will contribute to increased access to electricity and the increased generation of renewable energy in emerging markets.
“We are delighted to start this partnership with Swedfund and expand our work with development finance institutions. To solve energy access and climate change we need to match institutional investments at scale with clean energy projects around the world — which is what our blended funds achieve,” said SunFunder CEO Ryan Levinson. “We are particularly pleased to have now closed all the junior capital in the SET Fund.”
Here Is What You Need To Know
- The latest investment takes SET Fund commitments to $60m, with Swedfund joining anchor investors DFC, Calvert Impact Capital, Ceniarth and IKEA Foundation, among others.
- The fund’s junior layer has been filled, but there remains $10m available to senior investors.
- The $70m SET Fund, SunFunder’s third debt fund, is a 9-year blended finance vehicle for distributed solar and storage investments in African and other emerging economies.
- SunFunder has now unlocked over $150m in debt financing and made loans to more than 50 off-grid solar companies, impacting over 7 million people with improved access to energy and mitigating over 700,000 tons of CO2 equivalent emissions annually.
Read also: Four African Startups Secure $75k In Investments From Enygma Ventures
Why Swedfund Invested
The SET commitment is in line with Swedfund’s energy and climate goals of investing in the off-grid sector for solar energy, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, where more than half of the total population lacks access to electricity.
“This investment gives us, as a development finance institution, the possibility to contribute to climate change mitigation and improved standards of living due to access to affordable and reliable electricity. It’s also important for us to provide capital to a fund with an outspoken strategy to invest their way through the COVID-19 pandemic at a point in time where the general interest for investments in developing countries is expected to decrease,” said Swedfund’s CEO Maria Håkansson.
A Look At What SunFunder Does And Off-grid Startups May Apply For Loans From It
SunFunder provides innovative debt financing for solar enterprises working in emerging and frontier markets. It collaborates with major debt fund investors around the world to unlock capital for solar energy projects. Find out more below.
It invests in solar enterprises across Africa and other regions that need debt financing to scale. The company helps companies that are active in the off-grid, residential, productive use, mini-grid and commercial and industrial solar sectors. These companies range from established global players to early-stage pioneers.
To know more about SunFunder’s loan application process, click here.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer