Solarise Africa has secured a €1 million grant from the Energy and Environment Partnership Trust Fund (EEP Africa) to expand into Uganda and Zambia, targeting 3 MW of new renewable energy capacity over 24 months.
The company will provide an additional €1 million in co-financing, bringing the programme’s total budget to €2 million. The projects will combine solar photovoltaic systems, battery storage and, where appropriate, heat pumps for commercial and industrial businesses and social institutions.
The programme targets at least 4.5 GWh of renewable electricity generation and 3,600 tonnes of avoided carbon dioxide emissions.
Founded in 2018, Solarise Africa provides decentralised renewable energy systems through a financing model that combines engineering, equipment, operations and maintenance. Its Energy-as-a-Service model enables businesses to adopt solar power without bearing the full upfront cost of installing the infrastructure.
Solarise Africa secured a $33.4 million debt facility involving the Facility for Energy Inclusion (FEI), Oikocredit and AfricaGoGreen Fund. The facility comprised $21.4 million from FEI, $7 million from Oikocredit and $5 million from AfricaGoGreen Fund to support the company’s commercial and industrial solar business.
In December 2022, Solarise Africa received a further $3 million investment from EDFI ElectriFI to expand its Kenyan operations. TechMoran reported that the investment was the company’s third from ElectriFI and followed earlier financing from Trine, which had provided €5 million in debt funding, and crowdfunding associated with Energise Africa, which raised £1 million.
By May 2023, Solarise Africa reported approximately $50 million in cumulative equity and debt financing. That year, it won the African Unicorn Award for Greentech and Energy. At the time, the company had operations in Kenya, South Africa, Rwanda and Uganda.
In November 2024, Solarise Africa partnered with RUBiS Energy Kenya to launch RUBiSOL, a joint venture targeting commercial and industrial customers across East Africa with decentralised renewable energy solutions. RUBiS also planned to install solar panels at its service stations and depots. The partnership was detailed in TechMoran’s report on the RUBiSOL launch.
Solarise Africa has also received financing through AfricaGoGreen Fund, a climate-focused investment vehicle supporting energy efficiency and low-carbon technologies. In February 2023, TechMoran reported that the fund had secured $47 million in equity investments and had completed a Solarise transaction involving energy-efficient appliances in Kenya, South Africa and Mauritius.
In January 2026, the fund announced a further €30 million commitment from Germany’s development finance institution DEG to expand climate-focused investments across Africa, including distributed energy systems. TechMoran covered the commitment in its report on AfricaGoGreen Fund’s fundraising.
The latest EEP Africa grant will support market entry, local partnerships and project development in Uganda and Zambia, helping Solarise Africa establish operations intended to attract further private investment.
“This grant represents much more than entry into two new markets. It is an opportunity to demonstrate that a model we have spent years building and refining can be successfully replicated across Africa,” said Jan Albert Valk, co-founder and chief executive officer of Solarise Africa.
Sakkie van Wijk, co-founder and chief operating officer, said the company aims to establish commercially sustainable operations in both markets that can continue deploying energy infrastructure beyond the grant period.