Nigeria Tops Africa’s US$1.5m Clean Energy Grants as Eight Firms Win Funding By Raymond Enoch
Nigeria has emerged as the biggest beneficiary of a US$1.5 million continental clean energy financing programme, with eight indigenous renewable energy companies selected among 19 firms from Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia to expand access to solar-powered productive-use technologies for farmers, entrepreneurs and small businesses across Africa.
The funding was unveiled in Nairobi, Kenya, at the Adaptation Investment Summit 2026 under the Productive Use Financing Facility (PUFF), an initiative managed by CLASP and funded by the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP).
The programme will support the deployment of about 3,800 productive-use energy appliances across the three countries, while creating more than 3,000 green jobs and boosting productivity in agriculture and small-scale enterprises.
Nigeria accounted for the largest share of beneficiaries with Asolar System Nigeria Limited, Ceesolar Energy Limited, Cloud Energy Photoelectric, Consistent Energy Ltd, D@ech Nig Ltd, Ecotutu, Sosai Renewable Energies, and GreenPower Overseas Limited making the final list.
Kenya had six successful companies—Agsol Limited, Epicenter Africa Limited, Plexus Energy Limited, Suncool Storage, SunCulture Kenya Limited, and Sunspot Energy Kenya (Spark Possibilities)—while Ethiopia produced five beneficiaries: Awdi Negesti Special Purpose Machinery Manufacturing, Center for Applied Manufacturing Service & Engineering, Green Scene Energy PLC, Inter Ethiopia, and Zicon Trading.
The grants are intended to lower the cost of producing and distributing solar-powered equipment such as irrigation pumps, cold storage facilities, milling machines and refrigeration systems, making the technologies more affordable for farmers and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.
Despite improvements in electricity access across Africa through initiatives such as Mission 300, organisers noted that many businesses still lack the equipment needed to convert electricity into productive economic activities, limiting business growth and job creation.
Speaking on the initiative, CLASP’s Senior Director for Africa, Emmanuel Aziebor, said Africa’s economic future depends not only on expanding electricity access but on ensuring that energy powers businesses, creates jobs and improves livelihoods.
He said the technologies already exist, but affordability remains the biggest challenge facing entrepreneurs across the continent.
The organisers disclosed that the productive-use appliance market currently serves less than one per cent of Africa’s potential demand, despite projections that the sector could generate nearly US$16 billion in annual income and create 50 million jobs over the next decade if scaled up.
Vice President for Africa at the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, Carol Koech, said affordable financing remains essential to accelerating renewable energy adoption and empowering African entrepreneurs to expand their businesses while supporting a just energy transition.
The latest awards build on the success of PUFF’s first phase between 2022 and 2024, which invested US$2.7 million to support the deployment of nearly 16,000 productive-use appliances, directly benefiting more than 53,000 people across Africa.
CLASP, a global non-profit organisation with more than 25 years of experience in advancing energy-efficient technologies, manages the Productive Use Financing Facility. The organisation works with governments, manufacturers and development partners to accelerate climate-friendly technologies that improve livelihoods and drive sustainable development.
Funding for the programme comes from the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), a global clean energy coalition established in 2021 by The Rockefeller Foundation, IKEA Foundation and the Bezos Earth Fund. The alliance is implementing more than 130 clean energy projects across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, with a target of reaching 91 million people, creating or improving over three million jobs, and preventing nearly 300 million tonnes of carbon emissions.
The latest funding round further strengthens Nigeria’s position in Africa’s renewable energy landscape, providing local companies with fresh capital to expand clean energy solutions, boost enterprise productivity and support inclusive economic growth.
