The debt finance deal was struck between Pakistan-based EcoEnergy and SIMA, a social investment advisor and manager backed by Dutch and Belgian development banks, AXA, MetLife, the United States Agency for International Development, and the pension fund of the Episcopalian and Lutheran churches.
The capital provided to EcoEnergy will help scale up its operations in Pakistan, specifically by enabling it to purchase solar home systems, technology and services from U.K.-based off-grid developer, BBOXX, which itself recently raised €1 million in crowdfunded investments to support its Kenyan ambitions.
EcoEnergy aims to reach 10,000 households with the $600,000 investment; and is targeting another 10,000 by the end of the year.
Until now, the company says it has been constrained by a lack of access to working capital to buy the hardware it needed. “This investment will substantially increase its stock of solar home systems and provide access to BBOXX’s task management software, Pulse,“ said the company in a statement released.
Asad Mahmood, CEO and managing partner, SIMA Funds, commented, “Pakistan has great promise for the off-grid solar energy sector, which remains mostly untapped. Indeed, the potential size of the Pakistani market is bigger than that of Kenya and Tanzania combined.”
Shazia Khan, CEO, EcoEnergy, added, “Across Pakistan there are some 70 million people without access to grid electricity. This is holding back social and economic development.
“We have worked hard to gain a deep understanding of off-grid rural Pakistani communities in order to determine the best way to meet their energy needs. SIMA’s visionary work with us in securing this investment will provide us with the tools and services we need to expand the number of customers we can reach in Pakistan.”
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