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Nuru, a developer of hybrid solar off-grids based in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), has raised EUR1 million (US$1.2 million) in funding to scale into more provinces of the country.
Founded in 2015 as Kivu Green Energy, Nuru develops and operates urban hybrid solar mini grids in the province of North Kivu in eastern DRC. The company specialises in commercial, industrial and household customers, providing reliable, clean and comparatively more affordable energy than existing private solutions based on diesel generators.
A 1.35MW mini-grid deployed by Nuru in Goma is one of the main mini-networks in Sub-Saharan Africa, and it is now looking to scale its impact across the country after securing funding. The EUR1 million cash injection comes from Proparco, the subsidiary of the French Development Agency (AFD) group responsible for financing the private sector.
Nuru will use the funding to deploy its off-grid solutions in several further provinces of the DRC, and aims to electrify five million people by 2024 across North Kivu, Maniema, Ituri, Haute Uélé and Kasaï. It has already commissioned a 1.33MW hybrid solar power plant, which will be one of one of the largest off-grid power generation facilities on the African continent.
“We are proud to support the growth of the company as part of the Digital Africa initiative that we are rolling out for African startups, and we look forward to seeing how Nuru’s mini-grids can improve the lives of populations of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said Johann Choux, head of investments at Proparco.
“Proparco is committed to supporting innovative private actors committed to the fight against climate change who work in difficult environments. Nuru is one of these new teams of entrepreneurs whose talent and vision have a significant impact on sustainable development.”
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