Led · Equity · Sep 2015

GVE Projects (Green Village Electricity) deploys solar PV microgrids and a portable battery franchise model to deliver basic electricity services in off-grid Nigerian communities. The company has implemented smaller pilots, including a 6 kW PV microgrid in 2013 that powered lighting, phone charging, a health center and small appliances. The current project funded by this round will install three units of 24 kW PV solar-based microgrids to serve three off-grid villages, providing electricity to 200 homes in each village. GVE has received grants and awards in the past, including the Power Africa Off-Grid Energy Challenge and earlier prizes (a 2009 US$1,000 IEEE prize and a US$30,000 Bank of Industry/UNDP prize in 2012). Financially, GVE received an equity and debt investment of US$675,655.40 from the Bank of Industry and US$65,535.20 in matching funds from IEEE Smart Village, bringing total funding for this initiative to US$741,190.60; the CEO said this represents 90% of the total project cost. If the pilot is successful, the Bank of Industry plans to expand the program to 200,000 households (more than 1 million people) over the next five years.