D.light will take part in a grant-funded initiative by the Ugandan government to bring solar energy to homes, businesses, and public institutions with little to no energy access.
The $148 million grant will subsidize the price of the company’s clean cookstoves, solar home systems, and solar lanterns, and will allow low-income customers to purchase products on credit. The results-based grant will be awarded to D.light once sales targets, agreed upon with the Uganda Energy Capitalization Company, are achieved.
In addition to the grant program, D.light is taking part in the World Bank-funded Electricity Access Scale Up Project, and the company will be a part of a separate program meant to support refugees in Uganda and communities that house them with subsidized solar products. The program is supported by several international development agencies, including those within Germany and the Netherlands’ governments.
“Access to a reliable and affordable electricity supply is essential for achieving the economic growth and social development that will lift people and communities out of poverty and improve their quality of life,” said D.light CEO Nick Imudia. “In countries such as Uganda where much of the population still live without electricity, off-grid solar products are a proven, practical solution for their day-to-day energy needs. Government subsidy and credit support programs like the UECCC initiative opens up access to these products and allows more people to benefit from clean, safe, sustainable energy.”
Over the past 12 years, D.light said it has helped bring affordable solar lighting and other energy solutions to more than 128 million people and helped avoid about 36 million tons of carbon emissions in the process. The company began operations in Uganda in 2016 and currently has an office in Kampala.
In August of this year, the company announced that it had secured $30 million from the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank Group with the ability to purchase up to $125 million of assets to increase access to renewable energy in Tanzania. The financing is specifically being used to grow the company’s Pay-Go service, which allows low-income households to purchase D.light home products.
Only 40% of Tanzania’s population has energy access according to the World Bank, and 58% of Uganda’s population live without access to electricity -- one of the lowest electrification rates in the world. D.light said it aims to make clean energy products universally available and affordable.
“D.light has been present in Uganda for seven years and has an established network of distributors and agents across the country," said Imudia. "Our knowledge, experience, and resources on the ground there make us an ideal partner to work towards the Government’s objective of increasing access to energy for households, businesses, and public institutions.”
