Winch Energy, an off-grid renewable energy supplier, has launched a crowdfunding campaign to support solar off-grid initiatives that will deliver clean and dependable electricity to more people in Sierra Leone and Uganda. Individuals may participate in Africa’s developing sustainable energy sector through Crowdcube for as low as £10.
The work of Winch Energy is intended to assist the UN in meeting its Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), notably SDG 7, which calls for universal access to cheap, dependable, and modern energy services by 2030. With less than a decade remaining, Winch Electricity is focusing its efforts on Sub-Saharan Africa, which has the highest number of people without access to energy.
The COP26 meeting in October 2021 has fueled interest in ESG investments while also highlighting prospects for scaling up sustainable power solutions in poor nations. The need to transition away from fossil fuels has never been more pressing, with the electricity sector responsible for a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions. Winch Energy is already collaborating with many African governments, international foreign assistance agencies, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to electrify villages using their unique solar remote power unit (RPU) technology. With further projects in the pipeline, Winch Energy intends to expedite the transition to sustainable energy.
To date, Winch Energy has raised $18 million in equity and loans, and has a pipeline of projects that will help over 4.2 million people in off-grid regions. It concluded the largest ever mini-grid financing platform earlier this year, a $16 million deal through Winch IPP Holdings. This round of crowdfunding will fund further sustainable energy projects in Africa and help Winch Energy achieve its goal of becoming Africa’s largest off-grid utility. Total Eren, a stakeholder in the London-based firm, has already contributed £375,000 to the Crowdcube effort.
The organization has already installed pilots in Mauritania and Benin; created an award-winning project to power community healthcare centers in Sierra Leone; provided energy access to 20,000 people on Lake Victoria; and, most recently, began construction on 25 mini-grids in Uganda’s northern Lamwo district. The Hon. Okasaai Opolot, Uganda’s State Minister for Energy, presided over the inauguration event, and once operational, the facility would also provide street lighting and better water services in 25 settlements.
As additional ventures like these illustrate the effectiveness of off-grid market investment, developers will find it simpler to fund future projects and provide better price and higher quality goods to energy customers.
“One of the important implications from COP26 is the need to scale up clean energy generation in underdeveloped countries,” stated Winch Energy Limited founder and CEO Nicholas Wrigley. “Reliable energy access is critical for growing economies, raising living standards, and minimizing migration and overpopulation in cities.” We have seen firsthand the impact that access to clean, cheap energy can have. These nations require a variety of energy options to accomplish development goals; they have distant settlements and face topographical and infrastructure problems, but they are blessed with abundant sunshine, so solar is an obvious element of the mix. We have already witnessed significant growth in Africa’s clean energy economy, and the present focus on leveling up while controlling climate change will encourage even more progress. This crowdfunding campaign allows individuals to engage in the Company’s development and invest in change.”
