Share the page

Supplying reliable, clean and affordable energy

Project

NURU RDC PROPARCO
NURU
Signature date
Location
Democratic Republic of Congo
Financing tool
Equity investment
Financing amount (Euro)
500000
Financing details
USD 500,000 Equity Investment
Customer
Congo Energy Solution Limited
Type of customer
Company
Country of headquarters
Mauritius
Project number
PCD1027
Environmental and social ranking
B+
Climate co-benefits
Project with climate co-benefits
Download the report

This information is given at the time of signature, without prejudice to any developments in the operation/project.

Proparco is continuing to support Nuru, a key player in access to clean, reliable and affordable energy for people living in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Client presentation

Nuru was set up in August 2015 and develops and operates urban solar hybrid mini-grids in eastern DRC, in North Kivu.

Nuru specializes in commercial and industrial (C&I) clients and households, by developing reliable and clean energy that is comparatively more affordable than existing private solutions based on diesel generators. The proposed tariffs per kWh are 30 to 50% cheaper than the average cost of diesel generators in the region.

Project description

In 2018, Nuru concluded an initial fundraising which allowed it to commission a first 55 kW site in Ben, in North Kivu, and a second 1.35 MW site in Goma which is, by its size, one of the main mini-grids in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Building on these initial successes, the company has developed a pipeline of mini-grid projects in eastern DRC. Nuru has launched an operation to raise equity to finance these projects. In this context, in February 2021, Proparco signed a EUR 1m convertible bond tranche.

In 2023 Proparco is investing EUR 500,000 in Nuru to continue to support its ambition of developing reliable and affordable access to clean energy.

Project impact

The main expected impacts of the Nuru project are as follows:  

  •  Access to reliable electricity for 100,000 people over the next five years through solar mini-grids. The mini-grids will supply electricity to some 30 schools and health centers and 85 small businesses
  •  Support for some 1,700 jobs over the next five years. Nearly 30% of Nuru’s employees are women. Specific actions have been included in the E&S action plan to improve gender equality and formalize Nuru’s policies 
  •  Contribution to avoided emissions of nearly 5,000 tCO2eq per year

The project should contribute to SDG 7 (Clean energy), SDG 8 (Decent work and economic growth), SDG 9 (Infrastructure), and SDG 13 (Climate action).