Participated · Seed · Aug 2026

Biochar Industrial Group (BIG) is described in coverage as a Nigerian climate tech startup. The company recently completed a $1.5M pre-seed financing backed by Catalyst Fund, BREEGA and Mulago Foundation. The announced financing is the only funding event reported in the articles. The reporting does not provide details on the company’s products, operating metrics, revenue, or specific plans for the new capital. No founding year or additional location details were provided in the articles. There are no disclosed financial metrics or user figures in the coverage.

Participated · Debt Financing · Apr 2022

Founded in 2013 by Alloysius Attah and Emmanuel Owusu Addai, Farmerline works through agro-dealers to ensure access to high-quality supplies including fertilizer and seeds. Partner retailers use the startup’s Mergdata, a proprietary AI platform for supply-chain intelligence, to digitize farmers and predict demand to prevent stock-outs. The company leverages that data to determine business-expansion credit for agro-dealers and is expanding its physical infrastructure—warehouses and distribution networks—to create a marketplace that speeds movement of supplies and market access for farmers. Farmerline is expanding across West Africa, operating in Ghana and setting up operations in Ivory Coast. It has financed around $18 million worth of inputs and crops through franchise shop alliances and is targeting a direct reach of 300,000 farmers in 2022 (up from 79,000 the prior year). The company plans to strengthen supply chains to reduce farming costs and increase yields through AI deployment and local infrastructure amid rising fertiliser prices and food-security pressures. Farmerline is a Ghanaian agritech that provides a digital and physical marketplace connecting farmers to high-quality inputs, training, and market access. Its core product includes Mergdata, a proprietary AI supply-chain intelligence platform used to digitize farmers and predict demand for farm supplies. Farmerline works through partner agribusiness retail shops to distribute inputs and educational materials and to gather farmers for training, and it has developed credit-scoring for business expansion loans. The company has digitized over 1 million farmers across 26 countries and counts 180 clients for third-party Mergdata licensing; it more than doubled direct reach to 79,000 farmers last year (up from 36,000 in 2020 and 8,000 in 2019). Using new funding it plans to strengthen physical infrastructure—warehouses and distribution networks—and to expand first within Ghana and then into Ivory Coast, targeting 300,000 farmers in 2022 (roughly 400% growth versus the prior year).

Participated · Equity · Mar 2014

Zola Electric develops integrated renewable energy hardware and software, including the Infinity system that powers homes and offices and the Vision SaaS platform that provides data, analytics and control. The company began in 2011 offering solar-home solutions in Tanzania and has since expanded product lines to address off-grid, on-grid, rural, urban, residential and commercial needs. Zola positions Infinity as a primary power solution that integrates with grids, solar and batteries while digitally controlling and storing energy. The firm reports more than 1.5 million users and over 300,000 homes and businesses across multiple African countries and additional presence in the U.S., Brazil, Pakistan and the Philippines. Management says the new capital will be used for product development (next-generation digital renewable energy) and commercial expansion to fill out its "energy ladder." The company aims to expand further into Northern Africa, Asia and South America while continuing to build out on-the-ground personnel, developers, integrators and distributors. ZOLA Electric (formerly Off Grid Electric) designs and delivers solar, battery and power-electronics systems that can be purchased over time using PAYGo micro-finance and mobile money. The company powers more than 180,000 homes and businesses across Tanzania, Rwanda, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana. Its product offering is positioned to replace kerosene and enable lighting, small-business power, connectivity and expanded work and study opportunities. ZOLA has a roster of strategic and capital partners including Tesla, Total, EDF, DBL Partners, Helios Investment Partners and GE Ventures. The company is pursuing continued expansion across Africa and is using new financing to scale customer additions and product development. ZOLA has received industry recognition such as the UN Momentum for Change Award and the Zayed Future Energy Prize. Off Grid Electric develops rooftop solar and battery systems and leases pay-as-you-go home solar kits in Africa. Its leased systems include solar panels, batteries, lights, mobile phone chargers and televisions, with customers able to make payments via mobile phones. The company powers more than 150,000 homes and businesses across Tanzania, Rwanda and Ivory Coast and is expanding into Ghana as part of a partnership with Electricite de France SA. Off Grid’s model leverages declining panel prices to offer leasing options that compete with kerosene lamps and diesel generators. The company raised $55 million in a Series D round to support its expansion, and investors also include Tesla Inc., Total SA and DBL Partners. CEO Xavier Helgesen highlighted the cost advantage of solar electrons in explaining the company’s economics. Off Grid Electric is a Tanzania-headquartered company that develops and markets distributed solar home systems and batteries with a focus on African markets. Its products allow customers to power LED lights, mobile phone chargers and other small electronics. The article does not report revenue, user counts, or other operating metrics. It describes the company as a solar installer active in African markets. The piece focuses on the company's product offering and a recent financing, and does not detail future plans. No additional financial or operational details were provided in the article. Off Grid Electric delivers stand-alone solar systems to last-mile customers using mobile technology and an integrated approach to product design, distribution, sales, financing and service. The company offers basic systems that include LED lights, a radio, a USB charger and a TV, and larger systems that provide extra energy for charging multiple phones and powering appliances and televisions. It markets these systems at costs lower than traditional kerosene lighting. Leadership is led by CEO Xavier Helgesen, COO Erica Mackey and CTO Joshua Pierce. The company is based in San Francisco, Boulder and in Tanzania. Recent funding will be used to enter new African countries and to scale a partnership with the Tanzanian government to power 1 million homes by 2017.