UK's Renewable Energy Initiative Releases KSh 637.3m for Kenyan, African Firms in Clean Tech
- Powering Renewable Energy Opportunities (PREO) will provide KSh 637.3 million in grants to 22 clean tech companies across Sub-Saharan Africa.
- The program received a record 613 applications, highlighting the growing demand for clean energy solutions in the region.
- Kenyan companies, including Agsol Kenya, Synnefa Green, and Samaking, are among those receiving funding for innovative clean energy projects.
About 22 companies advancing clean tech solutions across sub-Saharan Africa will receive funding from Powering Renewable Energy Opportunities (PREO).
Source: UGC
The UK-based aid initiative announced an award of €4.26 million in grants to the companies, delivered by the Carbon Trust and Energy 4 Impact, Mercy Corps’ energy innovation platform.
The funding will support projects in sectors including food value chains, climate-smart water systems, e-mobility, digital innovation, and clean cooking.
The programme extended grants ranging from €100,000 (KSh 14.96 million) up to almost €300,000 (KSh 44.88 million) to support individuals with innovative projects that harness clean technologies to enhance livelihoods, increase incomes, and build climate resilience in the region.
PREO, which is funded by UK aid from the UK Government via the Transforming Energy Access platform and the IKEA Foundation, promotes the productive use of renewable energy (PURE) in sub-Saharan Africa and Pacific Island Countries to stimulate local economic development and support global progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG7, SDG8, SDG13).
How many people applied for UK funding
The funding programme attracted a record 613 eligible applications.
The applicants requested over €115 million (KSh 17.2 billion in funding and offered €73 million (KSh 10.9 billion) in co-financing.
This underscored the rapidly expanding ecosystem of companies developing PURE solutions across Africa and the appetite for on-the-ground programmes like PREO.
Companies selected as part of PREO's sixth wave represent a wide range of productive renewable energy applications:
Which Kenyan companies were selected
Transforming food value chains
Eight companies tackling livelihood challenges caused by food spoilage, and lack of value addition through solar-powered processing and preservation solutions were among those selected.
In Kenya, Agsol Kenya was selected to deliver solar-compatible grain mills with pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) financing to enable small rural businesses to transition from diesel-powered processing.
Synnefa Green was selected to provide solar-powered smart dryers integrated with Internet of Things (IoT) and digital traceability tools.
Samaking was tasked to commercialise a demand-driven farm-to-retail fish aggregation system across East Africa, leveraging solar-powered cold chain infrastructure and digital logistics.
In Malawi, SolarWorks Energy was selected to develop a 'pay-as-you-catch' consumer finance model for solar-powered night fishing lights to enable deep-water fishing on Lake Malawi.
Two women-led companies were selected to scale cooling solutions These are:
- Novel Farm in Uganda, which will roll out PAYGO solar-powered milk cooling systems with GPS monitoring,
- Green Eden Farms in Nigeria, which will develop low-cost solar-powered cold storage hubs with a digital platform linking farmers to buyers.
Munakyalo Agrofresh in Uganda was selected to offer solar-powered IoT-enabled cooling hubs through a 'pay-as-you-store' system alongside market linkage services, and Consistent Energy in Nigeria will provide a cooling-as-a-service model with locally assembled, solar-powered freezers.
Climate-smart water solutions
Five companies were selected to address water resource challenges by advancing solar-powered solutions.
Four of the companies, which are found in Kenya, are:
- Irri Hub Ke will deliver a PAYGO farming-as-a-service model combining IoT-enabled solar water pumps with agronomy training.
- Delish & Nutri is bringing solar irrigation systems within reach of contracted farmers through a harvest-linked 'pay-as-you-grow' repayment system.
- SunCulture's ‘JuaMaji’ initiative will pilot solar-powered water purification systems for rural businesses, providing PAYGO financing.
- Women-led Kijani Testing will develop quality assurance testing and after-sales support infrastructure for solar pumps, establishing arguably the first dedicated QA facility of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa.
The fifth company is in Nigeria, Spunvertek, will deploy IoT-enabled solar pumps through flexible lease-to-own and pay-per-use financing models, enabling farmers to make in-kind rice repayments and access off-taker markets.
Accelerating the e-mobility transition
Five companies were selected to develop innovations to accelerate the adoption of e-motorcycles and three-wheelers.
- In Kenya, Kiri EV, Ecobodaa, Stima Mobility
- In Benin ZED Motors
- In Ethiopia, S&Y Electrical Material
Digital platform innovation
GreenBay Market in Kenya selected to build a digital marketplace focused on certified pre-owned and energy-efficient PURE appliances, whilst Koolboksin Nigeria will transform refrigeration access through its Koolbuy platform.
Clean cooking innovation
Companies selected are
- Feion Green Ventures and Zuhura, both based in Kenya
UK Special Representative for Climate Rachel Kyte said the clean energy transition is the greatest economic opportunity that can only be unlocked through collaboration with entrepreneurs.
"Through our Powering Renewable Energy Opportunities programme, the UK is backing clean tech innovators across sub-Saharan Africa to provide the clean energy solutions that their communities need," said Kyte.
Programme Manager, IKEA Foundation Richa Goyal revealed that the foundation is built on the belief that access to renewable, reliable energy is fundamental to building resilient communities.
"Through our support for PREO, we are proud to be backing local entrepreneurs creating innovative, climate-smart solutions that improve incomes and accelerate the transition to a more sustainable future for their communities,” said Goyal.
The funded projects will run for 12 to 24 months, focusing on piloting new business models or adapting existing approaches that harness renewable energy for productive use.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
