Africa Go Green Fund invests $5m in improved cookstoves maker BioLite

The Africa Go Green Fund, which is managed by Cygnum Capital, has reached a deal to invest $5 million to finance the distribution of improved cookstoves across 10 African Countries by BioLite.

AGG’s investment will result in the distribution of improved cooking solutions to up to approximately 120,000 households across 10 African jurisdictions, which include Rwanda, Uganda, Malawi, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Madagascar, Nigeria, DRC, Zambia and Mali. The investment from AGG is expected to result in up to 1.6m tonnes of avoided emissions over the life of the project, said the firm in a statement.

BioLite has been a pioneer in developing carbon credits from the use of their next generation improved biomass stoves for nearly a decade, and uses revenues from the sale of credits to make their products more affordable and available to lower income households across sub-Saharan Africa.

We are thrilled to forge this partnership with AGG, whose catalytic financing will play a pivotal role in BioLite’s expansion across sub-Saharan Africa, furthering our goal to serve 20 million people with improved energy products by 2027. We are also grateful to USAID/Power Africa for backing this transaction through legal advisory support

Jonathan Cedar, CEO and Co-founder, BioLite

BioLite designs and manufacturers energy technology to cook, charge and light beyond the grid. The company distributes cookstoves to low-income households in Kenya, and under this transaction, in Rwanda, Nigeria, Mali, Madagascar, Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Uganda. BioLite plans to expand its operations to Malawi and Zambia.

Laurene Aigrain, Managing Director of AGG, commented: “We are delighted to engage in this strategic partnership with an organization that boasts a formidable footprint across Africa. This collaboration will significantly enhance the accessibility of affordable and clean cooking solutions in 10 African countries and epitomise AGG’s steadfast dedication to mitigating greenhouse gas emissions across the continent.”

AGG is designed to support activities that mitigate GHG emissions in Africa. The fund provides debt financing to businesses and projects across the spaces of industrial energy efficiency, green buildings, clean transport, and green appliances. AGG was established by KfW and has received funding commitments from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through KfW, in addition to funding commitments from the African Development Bank (and in its own capacity as the implementing entity for SEFA and the Clean Technology Fund (CTF)), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Nordic Development Fund (NDF), British International Investment (BII) and Calvert Impact Capital. The fund’s current committed capital is at $166 million.

brian@theenergyreview.com