The African Development Bank Group has approved a $5.65 million reimbursable grant to pilot a new financing mechanism aimed at unlocking capital for renewable energy projects in some of Africa’s most fragile and energy-poor markets.
The funding, drawn from the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa, will support the rollout of the Peace Renewable Energy Certificate (P-REC) Aggregation Facility, an initiative designed to convert corporate climate commitments into upfront financing for mini-grid developers.
Co-financed with an equivalent $5.65 million from the Nordic Development Fund, the $11.3 million facility will be managed by Camco Clean Energy in partnership with Energy Peace Partners, which created the Peace Renewable Energy Certificate model.
At its core, the facility introduces a market-based instrument that allows multinational companies to purchase renewable energy certificates generated exclusively from mini-grid projects operating in conflict-affected and underserved communities. Proceeds from these purchases are channelled back to developers as upfront capital addressing one of the most persistent constraints in rural electrification: access to finance.
The facility will sign long-term purchase agreements with developers across 14 frontier markets, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia and Nigeria, providing early-stage liquidity in exchange for future certificate revenues. The model is expected to recycle hard currency into markets where commercial financing remains scarce and risk perceptions are high.
Development impact projections indicate that about 856,000 people will gain first-time access to electricity through the initiative, supported by roughly 240,000 new connections and 71 megawatts of installed renewable capacity. Half of the beneficiaries are expected to be women, reflecting a growing emphasis on inclusive energy access.
The programme aligns with Mission 300 (http://apo-opa.co/3Q4ArjS), a joint effort by the African Development Bank and the World Bank to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030. By targeting fragile and conflict-affected states, the facility addresses a critical gap in achieving universal energy access, where traditional financing models have struggled to gain traction.
João Duarte Cunha of SEFA described the initiative as a “first-of-a-kind” effort to deploy a new climate finance product capable of unlocking commercial funding for private sector-led mini-grids, particularly in high-risk environments.
Satu Santala of the Nordic Development Fund (http://apo-opa.co/4svavwi ) underscored the urgency of expanding clean energy access in fragile regions, noting that the facility combines innovation and partnership to deliver sustainable solutions where energy deficits are most acute.
Industry players also see the model as a breakthrough in structuring non-dilutive financing. Geoff Sinclair, CEO of Camco, said the facility would provide low-cost capital to energy projects, boosting jobs and improving living standards, while Sherwin Das of Energy Peace Partners highlighted its potential to convert corporate climate ambition into tangible investments in underserved communities.
The initiative signals a broader shift in climate finance towards instruments that blend development impact with market mechanisms—while testing whether carbon-linked products can meaningfully de-risk and scale energy access investments in Africa’s most challenging operating environments.
