Azuri Technologies is targeting 6,000 new customers to grow its reach across the country in addition to Nyanza, Bomet and Eldoret where it has presence.
The Kenyan solar kits market has attracted multinationals like Indian firm Orb Energy and Germany-based Mobisol alongside local company M-Kopa.
Azuri, which opened its regional office in Nairobi last March, has footprints in 12 sub-Saharan Africa countries.
A United Kingdom-based solar kits firm has raised Sh17 million through crowd funding to power its expansion in Kenya as it eyes a bigger share of the market.
Azuri Technologies, which installs pay-as-you-go solar kits in off-grid homes, is targeting 6,000 new customers to grow its reach across the country in addition to Nyanza, Bomet and Eldoret where it has presence.
The firm said its new debt finance will enable its partner Raj Ushanga House to deploy 1,200 Azuri Solar Home Systems, providing clean electricity to about 6,000 people while enabling local businesses to flourish.
“Crowd funding is clearly no longer just for start-ups and has the potential to provide a new class of capital for energy access,” said Simon Bransfield-Garth, CEO of Azuri.
The Kenyan solar kits market has attracted multinationals like Indian firm Orb Energy and Germany-based Mobisol alongside local company M-Kopa.
Each kit, which comes with lamps and slots for phone and radio charging, costs between Sh12,500 and Sh24,500.
Azuri, which opened its regional office in Nairobi last March, has footprints in 12 sub-Saharan Africa countries.
It has operated in Kenya since 2011, relying on local agents to supply solar kits. Customers have the option of paying between Sh31.50 and Sh50 every day through mobile money services over a period of up to 18 months.
Solar experts reckon that Kenya, like most African countries, has high potential for solar energy generation given high radiation levels from the sun throughout the year.
The intensity of sunlight, not heat levels, determines solar electricity production.
Kenya’s total installed power capacity stands at 2,294 megawatts, with solar power accounting for less than one per cent. This has presented a huge market for independent investors to supply kits to off grid customers.
About half of the country’s homes are not connected to the national electricity grid, due to cost barriers, a challenge investors seek to tackle with flexible financing.
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