- IFC and the Government of Canada have invested $5m in Husk Power Systems Nigeria to deploy 108 solar hybrid mini-grids in Nigeria.
- The financing supports a $25m project to boost off-grid energy access and serves as a model for scalable, private-sector-led electrification across Africa.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), in collaboration with the Government of Canada, has committed $5 million to Husk Power Systems Nigeria to support the deployment of 108 solar hybrid mini-grids across underserved communities in Northern Nigeria.
The investment, announced in Lagos on Thursday, May 15, is designed to provide reliable, affordable, and renewable electricity to approximately 115,000 people, including households and small businesses. The project aims to create an estimated 28,750 new electricity connections.
This marks the first financing under the IFC’s Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) Platform, a $200 million debt facility launched in November 2024 to promote private-sector electrification initiatives in West and Central Africa.
The funding includes a $2.5 million senior loan from IFC’s account and a $2.5 million concessional subordinated loan from the Canada-IFC Renewable Energy Program for Africa.
Structured as a revolving loan, the facility will allow Husk to draw, repay, and reuse the funds, ensuring greater financial flexibility and scalability throughout the project’s lifecycle.
Furthermore, with a total project cost of around $25 million, Husk’s mini-grid rollout is expected to substantially improve energy access in remote areas grappling with chronic energy poverty.
“This investment is an innovative approach to tackling one of Africa’s most pressing challenges, energy access. By partnering with Husk and launching the first project under the DARES Platform, we are addressing Nigeria’s urgent energy needs and creating a scalable model for the continent.” Ethiopis Tafara, Regional Vice President for Africa at the IFC, added.
In addition, the DARES Platform complements the World Bank-financed Nigeria DARES project, a separate $750 million initiative launched in December 2023. The programme, implemented by Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency (REA), targets the delivery of decentralised renewable energy to over 17.5 million nationwide.
“Adding 108 new communities to our mini-grid portfolio with IFC’s support is a major step toward our broader ambition of deploying at least 250MW of decentralised renewable energy projects in Nigeria,” Olu Aruike, Husk Nigeria’s Country Director, stated welcoming the partnership.
Husk’s Co-founder and CEO, Manoj Sinha, also highlighted the funding model’s importance, calling it a “vital catalyst” for the mini-grid sector. “This innovative debt facility is exactly what the industry needs to scale — blended, long-term, and affordable capital.”
The initiative reflects increasing international and private-sector commitment to closing Nigeria’s electricity access gap. It also reinforces the central role of renewable energy in achieving inclusive and sustainable development across emerging economies.