- Engie Energy Access opens up a participatory financing platform for SSA.
- The platform aims to accelerate the deployment of off-grid solar energy.
Engie Energy Access, in collaboration with Energy Web, has announced the launch of a participatory financing platform to accelerate the deployment of off-grid solar energy for sub-Saharan Africa.
The platform – Crowdfund for Solar is a decentralised financing platform (DeFI) whose aim is to install solar systems in villages that are not connected to a power grid. According to a local news report, the platform, hosted on Energy Web’s open-source infrastructure, allows investors to stake Energy Web Tokens (EWT) in exchange for a fixed income. The main beneficiaries of this digital solution include schools, households and small businesses that will be able to acquire solar power generation equipment through the pay-as-you-go system.
In the announcement, the German-based company stated that priority would be given to women, as Engie Energy Access plans to grant at least 30% of the loans to female-headed households.” According to Engie, the Crowdfund for Solar platform was tested over a two-week pilot period, with a funding target of $100,000, or 20,000 EWT. The target was “achieved just seven hours after the platform’s launch, which is a testament to the success of the operation and a real enthusiasm from crypto-investors to support this solution,” says the company led by Gillian-Alexandre Huart.