Oolu, a leading solar distributor in West Africa, has closed a $8.5 million Series B investment round led by independent renewable energy developer RP Global. Additional participating investors included Persistent Energy Capital, Shell-seeded impact investor All On, Gaia Impact Fund, and DPI Energy Ventures. With this investment, Oolu will expand its core product offering to meet the needs of its current and future customers and further develop its operations in West Africa.

“The strength of our business and industry during a challenging global pandemic has demonstrated the value that customers see in our products and service. RP Global’s financial expertise and experience in managing renewable energy businesses will enable us to accelerate our growth. All On’s unparalleled knowledge of the renewable energy sector in Nigeria will help us to further adapt our business to meet customers’ needs. In addition, we are excited to continue our successful collaboration with current investors especially Persistent,” Dan Rosa, CEO and co-founder of Oolu, said.

Why The Investors Invested

“We are looking forward to working with the most promising solar home systems provider in West Africa,” said Leo Schiefermueller, Director of RP Global Africa. “Having found a partner with such an efficient structure and excellent management, makes us optimistic that this will be our greatest venture in Africa to date. The fantastic team at Oolu is prepared to lead the company towards a whole new level of success and growth in all areas of one of Africa’s most important challenges — ‘access to energy’.”

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RP Global is a developer and independent power producer that draws its expertise from over 30 years of experience in the renewable energy sector. As a developer, investor and operator, RP Global’s focus is on hydro, wind and solar PV projects. The company has had many successful partnerships and cooperations with investors and lenders such as the IFC/World Bank, the EBRD, Mirova/Natixis, the Marguerite Fund and the Bank of Georgia.

“Oolu Solar’s operational expertise, geographical spread in West Africa, flexibility and efficiency has earned the company a leadership position in solar home systems distribution. Their success across the region and Nigeria gives All On the confidence that this investment will further enhance our commitment to enabling the deployment of affordable off- grid power solutions in the Niger Delta and Nigeria as a whole,” said All On Investment Manager, Afolabi Akinrogunde. 

All On, an impact investing company, was seeded with funding from Shell, and works with partners to increase access to commercial energy products and services for unserved and underserved off-grid energy markets in Nigeria, with a special focus on the Niger Delta. All On invests in off-grid energy solutions spanning solar, wind, hydro, biomass and gas technologies deployed by both foreign and local access-to-energy companies that complement available grid power across Nigeria and help bridge the country’s significant energy gap.

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A Look At What Oolu Does

Founded in 2015 by Nilmi Senaratna and Daniel Rosa, Oolu’s mission is to provide affordable energy access to rural and peri-urban customers in West Africa. The company has operations in in five West African countries: Nigeria, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. It has sold over 60,000 solar home systems to customers in the region. In addition to a large distribution and service network, Oolu employs over 250 full-time employees and is run by a Dakar-based management team of whom 50% are women. Oolu was part of Y Combinator’s Summer 2015 batch.

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