Nigerian cleantech startup, Havenhill Synergy Limited, has raised $4.6m from Chapel Hill Denham Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund (NDIF) to aid the construction of 22 smart solar mini-grids in Nigeria.
Founded in 2010 by CEO Olusegun Odunaiya, Havenhill focuses on improving access to electricity in rural areas using mini-grids. The company also offers renewable energy services for businesses in Nigeria's industrial and commercial hubs.
Havenhill's solar mini-grid solution promises to connect up to 70,000 people as well in establishments in various communities to clean and reliable energy.
In a statement, the NDIF asserts that the recent funding round was in line with the Nigeria Electrification Project.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), access to electricity in Nigeria is still low and its rural electrification rate still stands at 39%. In 2019, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimated this gap costs Nigeria an estimated $29 billion annually.
So far, the Nigerian government has taken steps to develop the solar power sector, but there are still some questionable aspects of its rural electrification plans. We explored some of these questions in this piece.
The CEO of NIDF, Anshul Rai noted that Havenhill's financing was completed from the fund’s recently concluded Series-7 capital raise, which also involved the participation of African Development Bank (AfDB).
It is noteworthy that cleantech is increasingly becoming an attractive investment destination as Briter Bridges reports that only fintech outperformed cleantech startups in attracting funding in 2020.
Per Techpoint Africa's startup funding report, the sector comes behind online retail and healthtech in 2020, but it could witness improved growth in the coming months.
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