Arnergy supported by Bill Gates to expand solar access in Nigeria by $ 18 million as the search jumped
The demand for solar energy in Nigeria -starved energy has increased over the last decade, due to the worsening of network reliability and increasing fuel costs. This is an attracted interest to investors in the ArnergiaMeeting to start Cleantech that needs. The company has just collected an extension of Series B of $ 15 million (on top of a round of $ 3 million B1 Last year), bringing their total amount for the circle to $ 18 million.
This jump in demand for solar systems follows significant changes in policy, most of all Removing Nigeria’s decades of fuel In May 2023 (the government’s decision – he had long discussed his practice to cover the difference between global and local fuel prices).
Since then, gasoline prices have jumped nearly 500%, making electricity generators, once regarded as the more affordable alternative to the unreliable electricity and solar systems, despite the dangers of the environment, far more expensive.
Arnergy’s terrain has changed over time. “When we started the business, we positioned solar energy as a way to get continuous power, not necessarily to save money. This was not part of a commercial conversation,” founder and executive director Femi adeemo He told TechCrunch. “Now it is because we can clearly show customers how our systems save them a month, whether they use gasoline, diesel or even the net.”
Adeyemo launched Arnergy in 2013 to provide solar systems to homes and businesses in sectors such as hospitality, education, finance, agriculture and healthcare.
What started as a sustainability game is now a strategy for saving costs changing the economy of accepting the clean, supported by Bill Gates’ breakthroughs (The company leads ARNERGY Series of $ 9 million in 2019)
Increasing Leasing Acceptance
This adoption is most clearly in the company’s leasing product, Z Litewho became a major focus by following Arnergy’s first series B Last year.
Although outspoken purchases contained 60% to 70% of revenue in 2023, they represent only 25% of sales last year. On the other hand, a rental where customers pay fixed monthly fees over 5 to 10 years before owning the system has acquired more grip.
One of the reasons for this change is accessibility compared to electricity tariffs. Until recently, many people viewed long-term leasing contracts as more expensive than to manage diesel or gasoline generators. But with the diesel prices rising after subsidizing and climbing rates for the network-especially after a new government policy last April This tripled the cost of electricity consumption for customers with the most stable power-Lease-out-Uund Solar is becoming more and more popular with customers, says Adeemo.
“Imagine paying ₦ 200,000 (~ $ 125) every month for power. With our product, this drops to $ 96,000 (~ $ 60). In five years, it’s not a fancy what you will save,” the CEO said. He added that many existing customers are returning to double their solar capacity or to switch completely out of the net as a result.
Arnergy tripled its customer base for leasing between 2023 and 2024 and expects to increase it 4-5 times this year. The revenue from Nira climbed respectively and are about to give up until the end of the year.
Dollar revenue, on the other hand, remained equal due to currency devaluation, but Adeemo said the company was building currency revenue through denominated in the dollar B2B2C partnerships and potential expansion in Francophone Africa.
Scaled against the background of another government policy
So far, Arnergy has deployed over 1800 systems in 35 Nigerian states, on a total 9MWP solar and 23mWh battery storage.
Arnergy plans to use its new funding, which has led the Nigerian Private Capital Cardstone Capital Advisers (CCA) to install more than 12,000 systems by 2029.
But hitting this goal requires a strategic change. For nearly a decade, Arnergia has been involved in internal sales. He now accepts a partnership model, with business clients and physical retail outlets outside Lagos, to reach more customers in the Nigeria market that was starving.
Lagos-based Cleantech is negotiating to recruit additional local banks and DFI debt to support these projects, including Energy As-A-Service (EAAS) solutions for multinational companies, Adeyemo says.
But since Arnergy is preparing for scales, the proposed policy may threaten its inertia.
Last month the Nigeria Government declared plans to ban imports of solar panels to increase local production. This move has entered the stakeholders who claim that the internal capacity is far from ready.
Adeyemo agrees to the target, but not for the approach. He warned that premature ban could stop an industry that only descends from the ground.
According to CEO, Nigeria should create an environment with the right infrastructure, policy stability and access to capital so that local factories can increase over the next 3 to 5 years. Only then should the country begin to think of gradually extracting imports.
“We are advocates for local production. But let’s build capacity before closing the import door. Otherwise, we run the risk of doing more harm than both the industry and the millions of Nigerians who now rely on solar energy as a major source of energy,” he noted.
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