Promising energy access companies set to secure financing through investment readiness support
Solakilimo and Lanforce Energy have become the first energy access companies to benefit from Energy 4 Impact advisory as part of the expanded roll-out of GET.invest Finance Readiness Support. This European initiative, designed to assist locally-owned and -managed clean energy businesses in sub-Saharan Africa, advises early-stage companies in their capital-raising journey and supports them to secure the financing they need to achieve scale and impact.
Following a successful two-year pilot ending in December 2023, GET.invest is now expanding its Finance Readiness Support to a larger group of early-stage energy companies. These start-ups often face challenges to secure funding due to their small size, limited operational history, and specific funding requirements. As one of eight leading consultancies appointed to advise the companies, Energy 4 Impact will continue to provide in-depth business development and financing guidance. Such support is vital as local companies are uniquely positioned to deliver energy solutions that drive economic growth and improve quality of life in last-mile communities.
Solakilimo, a cold storage specialist, offers solar-powered freezers and cold rooms in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. For dairy, fish and livestock farmers and traders, spoilage is a severe problem which not only shrinks their volume of saleable produce, but undermines local food security and economic development. Solakilimo’s refrigeration and logistics solutions cut losses by 80% and extend the shelf life of perishable foods from three to 21 days. To enhance market access and further maximise their profits, Solakilimo connects farmers to third-party solar-powered refrigerated transportation. The company is also diversifying into distributing solar cookstoves, helping local communities reduce their reliance on inefficient traditional stoves which burn polluting biomass fuels.
Energy 4 Impact will support Solakilimo in refining their value proposition and customer segmentation approach. Additionally, they will advise on developing the company’s sales strategy and a financial model, including accurate unit economics. To gear up for investor engagement, Solakilimo will work with their advisor on completing a pitch deck and term sheet.
Our company aims to address the shortfalls in aggregation, cold chain access, logistics, and market linkage that keep rural farmers and traders trapped in poverty. Our products and services can improve their livelihoods, but only if we first obtain the investment we need to scale as demand grows. So it is a thrill to work with Finance Readiness Support on unlocking the next stage in our growth,
says Raphael Asiba, CEO and co-founder at Solakilimo.
Lanforce Energy, a women-owned and -run distributor in Zimbabwe, specialises in biogas digesters and biogas-powered cooking and productive use appliances. Their products include traditional fixed dome and prefabricated portable digesters, alongside appliances such as heaters for poultry and piggeries, water heaters, storage bags, cookstoves and refrigerators. Providing an alternative to polluting charcoal or unreliable grid electricity, Lanforce’s biogas solutions enhance productivity and profitability on low-income farms. For example, farmers can reduce crop spoilage with reliable storage options, whilst biogas-powered appliances help maintain healthy livestock with reduced mortality rates. The digesters also assist farmers in meeting stringent waste regulations, improving air quality, and reducing the health risks associated with indoor air pollution.
Energy 4 Impact will support Lanforce to strengthen their financial infrastructure and improve management information systems. It will also advise them on building operational capacity in credit risk management, critical since Lanforce introduced PAYG biogas digesters on credit. To prepare for investment, the advisor will provide guidance on setting up a data room, developing financial and unit economics models, and compiling an investment deck.
This advisory offers an excellent opportunity to build our fundraising capacity and identify the right type of investors for us. With investment, we can expand our distribution network to reach more SMEs and residential customers, allowing us to increase our sales and enlarge our geographical footprint. As a result, we’ll be able to deliver much-needed energy solutions to many more rural communities,
says Judith Marera, co-founder of Lanforce.
As both companies approach investment readiness, Energy 4 Impact will identify and introduce them to financiers with a view to attracting up to USD $1 million in commercial capital. Energy 4 Impact’s Programme Manager Herbert Njiru Nyaga says,
Once they begin operations but have yet to generate significant revenue, promising energy start-ups sometimes struggle to survive. Our hands-on advisory aims to help them emerge from this so-called valley of death by securing the investment required to deliver their transformative solutions on a larger scale.
About GET.invest Finance Readiness Support
The GET.invest Finance Readiness Support, a service of the European programme GET.invest, enables locally-owned and managed clean energy businesses to access finance. Launched in 2021, the service provides early-stage, micro, small and medium-sized energy companies in sub-Saharan Africa with hands-on, in-depth business development support and coaching along their finance access journey.
The service is implemented by eight leading advisory firms – Advance Consulting, Catalyst Energy Advisors, Energy 4 Impact, GFA Consulting Group & I&P Conseil, GreenMaxCapital Group, Inensus, Open Capital and Persistent – as part of GET.invest, a programme co-funded by the European Union, Germany, Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Austria.