Investor Forum Matchmakes Companies and Investors in Clean Energy
EEP Africa, Shell Foundation and Factor[e] Ventures together with select investors and companies come together in Nairobi for high energy investor day.
EEP Africa, Shell Foundation and Factor[e] Ventures convened a select group of impact investors for structured matchmaking meetings with a curated group of high impact, investible clean energy companies in Nairobi on 24 September 2019. The invitation-only event brought together more than 50 global and regional investors, DFIs and funds together with more than 20 leading innovation- and impact- oriented companies in clean energy and sustainable transport.
The day showcased the value of partnerships at all levels. EEP Africa and Shell Foundation each have long experience hosting successful investor events and deep early stage investment portfolios in clean energy in Africa. Together with Factor[e] Ventures, the partners together brought a combined portfolio of high quality companies in front of a room of investors, providing pure added-value in a single day for investors and companies alike.
Kicking off the event on behalf of the Nordic Development Fund (NDF), EEP Africa Fund Manager and NDF Program Manager Charles Wetherill told the audience.
I ran into a CEO in the airport yesterday who said he dropped everything and flew here exclusively for this event when he saw the high-quality investor list.
“Our purpose is to catalyse investment in a curated pipeline of investible companies delivering climate relevant, clean energy business models in line with the SDGs,” Wetherill said in a morning address to investors, adding, “we want to be your trusted and preferred partner for identification of the next generation of scalable investment opportunities in clean energy in Africa.”
The day also offered dedicated opportunities for investors only to network and discuss topics including catalysing blended finance, valuation strategies, access to local currency debt and guarantees and best practices on identifying, mentoring and investing in local African entrepreneurs. Participants included private equity and impact investors, debt and guarantee providers, grant facilities, local banks, and DFIs.
EEP Africa Head of Portfolio & Finance, Lauri Tuomaala, highlighted that
the strong portfolio of companies here today is a testament to the power of partnership and provides investors with an efficient platform to connect with emerging players in the sector and identify investment opportunities.
EEP Africa was proud to partner with Shell Foundation and Factor[e] Ventures on this major event.
“Access to finance is a key barrier towards scaling off-grid energy and transport businesses in East Africa,” noted Heidi Hafes, Market Development Manager for Shell Foundation.
Events like these are important in bringing together investors active in the sector with relevant entrepreneurs. We look forward to seeing today’s vibrant discussions lead to positive actions.
Faith Chege, East Africa Regional Associate at Factor[e] Ventures, emphasized that
“the strong network of investors here provide follow-on funding to our diverse portfolio of found and validated companies, creating a rich pipeline of technology-enabled ventures in the region. These partnerships have made it possible for funded companies to raise Series A and B rounds.”
Participating companies were also selected from the portfolio of the Nordic Climate Facility, a challenge fund facility managed by NDF and providing early stage grant support for innovative climate business concepts with focus on specific countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Ramses Malaty, Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Finland in Kenya, closed the event by noting that it’s “great to witness the effect of Finland’s long-term commitment to EEP Africa. The private sector collaboration keeps growing and getting better all the time!”
Plans are already underway for the next investor event to take place in South Africa in the first half of 2020. Interested investors are invited to be in touch at info@eepafrica.org to explore participation.
EEP Africa is a clean energy financing facility managed by the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) with funding from Austria, Finland and NDF. It provides early stage grant and catalytic debt financing to innovative clean energy projects, technologies and business models in Southern and East Africa.
Shell Foundation (SF) is a UK-registered charity that creates and scales business solutions to enhance access to energy and affordable transport. It supports innovators to test new technology and enterprise models that can contribute towards the SDGs, achieve financial independence and operate at scale.
Factor[e] Ventures is a venture capital firm with operations in East Africa, USA & India. We invest in early stage ventures in agriculture, sanitation, mobility & energy. Through our venture development high touch model, we work closely with our portfolio companies to transform their ideas into market based solutions.
Nordic Climate Facility (NCF) is a challenge fund hosted and managed by the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) financing early stage climate projects in select countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. NCF aims to build a portfolio of innovative business concepts which have been tested, proved viable and are ready to be scaled-up and replicated.