CEI Africa SOF Call 3 Grants for Off-Grid PUE Projects (Up To $1,110,000.00 in Grant)

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Applications are open for CEI Africa SOF Call 3 Grants. The Smart Outcomes Fund (SOF) component of the Foundation is based on the Social Impact Incentives (“SIINC”) approach that rewards impact- oriented private enterprises for the specific positive impact they generate.

The objective of the SOF component is to positively impact rural and peri-urban livelihoods by incentivizing the deployment of Productive Use of Energy (PUE) technologies, and thus support the growth of the PUE sector in Sub- Saharan Africa.

The SOF Component targets mini-grid developers and stand-alone off-grid enterprises deploying PUE, under a two-phased implementation:

Phase 2: Extends to other off-grid business models and off-grid enterprises that are deploying PUE or intend to deploy PUE, such as PAYGO solar and PUE distribution companies. Launched in September 2024 in Kenya, now scaling to eight more countries via this call

CEI Africa SOF Call 3 Grants Benefits

Grant amount:

The total grant provided is up to 50% of CAPEX and can consider up to 50% of other justified one-off costs related to the deployment of the proposed equipment where applicable (i.e. no recurring costs are allowed), subject to evaluation by CEI Africa for suitability. These additional one-off costs are expected to be of much lower value compared to the CAPEX, and approval of any amount as part of the grant is at CEI Africa’s discretion.
The minimum grant available per applicant is $100,000.00 and the maximum amount available for this call is $1,110,000.00. An exemption is however available for Locally-owned companies, that are allowed to apply for lower amounts, but not less than $50,000.00.

Use of Funds

Applicants may use the grant funds flexibly, whether it is used for CAPEX (cost of the PUE equipment thus sold to end users at a subsidized price), or logistics, etc. Applicants must however not subsidize the PUE CAPEX by more than 50%, i.e. sell to end users at a price that is subsidized by more than 50%.

Participation

This SOF Call for Applications #3 (SOF Call 3) initiates the second funding cycle of Phase 2 of the SOF component of CEI Africa, for off-grid enterprises deploying PUE equipment and technologies that is not connected to any grid but has its own renewable power source (stand-alone PUE)

Application Assessment

The applicant must meet the minimum requirements in order to be eligible for a grant from the SOF component, including the minimum legal and regulatory requirements and the PUE equipment must meet the minimum criteria including certifications and warranty.
Applicants must provide evidence of, among others:
- Legal status as a for-profit entity in compliance with the law,
- Proof of financial capability and financial management capacity as set forth in the SOF component Operations Manual,
- Meeting minimum workforce gender balance requirements as set forth in the SOF component Operations Manual, or presenting a plan to achieve such,
- Evidence of having deployed stand-alone renewable energy-powered PUE equipment in the country (ies) of application, and for a period of at least six months prior to filing a SOF component application. Applicants will need to upload data as evidence of PUE experience, including a list of sample customers connected to PUE, type of equipment, among others. A separate document will be provided to upload this information.
Qualified applicants must submit the following – and additional documents if requested by the SOF Window Manager, the SOF Committee or the Board:
- 7-10 PUE equipment customer contacts (sample representative for types of PUE technologies deployed in the countries of application);
- The primary generation technology supplying power to the stand-alone equipment must be renewable and stand-alone, i.e. not connected to a grid. (The primary generation technology is the technology from which more than 75% of the power is generated in any given year.) The power output should have the capacity to support the energy requirements for the PUE connection.
- All equipment proposed must have the ability to connect to the Odyssey platform either through an IOT or metering platform via an API connection.