Kivu Green Energy

Country

DRC

Technology

Hybrid Solar-Battery-Genset

Business model

Minigrid

Contract signature date: 13 December 2018
Region: Sub Saharan Africa
Country: Democratic Republic of the Congo
Sector: Solar PV
Total ElectriFI financing: 1.433 M USD
Environmental and Social Category*: B

*(A) high risk, (B+) medium high risk, (B) medium risk or (C) low risk

Brief description of the client and project

Kivu Green Energy (or “KGE”) is a minigrid operator based in North Kivu, DRC. KGE is operating a 55 kW solar-hybrid minigrid in Beni, and are in the process to retrofit and upgrade another formerly diesel-based minigrid to a ~1.3MW solar PV + 2MWh storage system with diesel back-up. The business model is a hybrid minigrid-C&I model since there will be a high component of anchor customers (50-75%) alongside the household and SME clients. The company has a pipeline of 10-25MW of similar projects in the same region that it will deploy in the years to come.

Funding objective

ElectriFI will invest USD 0.5mln equity and USD 0.933mln shareholder loan. The proceeds will be used to build the first large scale Goma system, as well as to further develop and upscale the company and its pipeline.

Why ElectriFi wants to fund this project

ElectriFI supports the interesting business model of the company and considers it to have very high additionality giving the difficult region it operates in. Furthermore, the project directly replaces low-quality electricity from highly polluting diesel-genset by a qualitative service of offering from predominantly renewable sources.

Environmental and social rationale: Which IFC PSs are triggered and the rationale behind it.

The Project is rated category B. Activities come with potential limited adverse risks associated with waste management and labour conditions.

IFC Performance Standards 1 to 4 to be triggered and addressed accordingly via EHS management plans.