AfricaGoGreen gets $30m to drive Africa’s energy transition

BY: CHARLES ABUEDE

The AfricaGoGreen Fund, a flagship project under the G20 Compact with Africa has received a $30 million investment from three development finance institutions – the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the Bank’s Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) in collaboration with Nordic Development Fund (NDF).

The new funds are expected to trigger additional investments by commercial investors and financiers either directly or through the co-funding of projects.

The AfDB and SEFA said in a statement that they have approved a combined-equity investment of $20 million in AfricaGoGreen. These new investments come on top of $11.5 million equity contribution approved by the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) in December 2021. The fund was established to promote private investments in energy-efficient technologies and business models, with the objective of decarbonising African economies and accelerating the energy transition.

NDF is also a donor to SEFA, thus reinforcing the close partnership to advance the transition to cleaner and greener solutions for the continent while encouraging the participation of the private sector and based on its profile, the NDF provides financing to climate change mitigation and adaptation activities within the nexus of climate change and development.

Kevin Kariuki, African Development Bank vice president, power, energy, climate and green growth, said, “This combined bank investment will lead to increased financing of emerging projects and businesses in the areas of industrial appliances, electric mobility and green buildings, which are key to the decarbonisation of African economies and to a just energy transition. Achieving the climate goals and universal access to clean and affordable energy will require vast investment in energy efficiency and, more broadly, in electrification and other sector coupling trends.”

Also, Henrik Franklin, director for portfolio origination and management at the Nordic Development Fund, said “By targeting these emerging sectors in Africa, AGGF complements our climate and energy access portfolio, and is aligned with our strategic role as an early-stage catalytic investor.

Jan Martin Witte, director, global equity and funds for KfW Development Bank, said, “We are really happy to see the Bank, SEFA and NDF as new investors in AGGF. These new investments are also expected to trigger additional investments by commercial investors and financiers either directly or through the co-funding of projects.

Clemens Calice, co-CEO and founding partner of Lion’s Head Global Partners, managers of the fund through its LHGP Asset Management, said: “We are excited to welcome the African Development Bank, SEFA and NDF as investors to the AfricaGoGreen Fund. The Fund will take efforts to transition to a lower-carbon economy a step further by offering finance to innovative African companies that embrace energy efficiency as a challenge and an opportunity.”

Launched in early 2021 with €45 million in catalytic capital, AfricaGoGreenFund provides flexible and tailored debt instruments to private businesses in green appliances for domestic and industrial processes, green buildings, e-mobility solutions, and battery energy storage projects.

The Fund approved its first deal in August 2021, a loan to AktivCo – a company that finances clean energy solutions for powering telecommunication towers located in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, and Niger. Also, in December 2021, it made an additional approval of a $5.5 million loan to BBOXX, a technology company exploring energy solutions that would provide electricity and other utilities to the millions without them, for the expansion of access to clean cooking solutions.