- Sun King aims to extend affordable solar power across Africa through rapid expansion and local production.
- The company’s mission focuses on powering homes, schools, and small businesses with clean, reliable energy.
Sun King is strengthening its position in Africa’s off-grid solar market, targeting new countries and wider coverage in existing ones. The company’s co-founder, Anish Thakkar, said its expansion will support millions of households and small businesses that still lack reliable electricity.
“Our goal is to deliver clean, affordable solar energy to every home and enterprise in need,” Thakkar said. Over the past four years, the company has tripled its stores and field agents. It now connects around 300,000 homes and businesses monthly, compared to only 10,000 in 2017.
Sun King operates in 11 African countries, including Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, and South Africa. Kenya remains its largest market, where one in five homes uses Sun King products for lighting and charging. Nigeria follows closely, connecting about one million new households annually through 100 stores and 9,000 agents.
The company’s expansion coincides with rising efforts by African governments to boost electricity access. In sub-Saharan Africa, eight in ten people still live without power. To address this, Sun King collaborates with the Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency under the Nigerian Electrification Programme, which provides purchase subsidies for rural households.
Furthermore, Sun King has signed a memorandum of understanding under the World Bank-funded $750 million Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up project. The initiative aims to accelerate electrification and promote sustainable development.
To enhance efficiency, Sun King is also investing in local manufacturing. Production lines have begun operating in Kenya, while facilities in Nigeria are expected to launch next year. With this, the company hopes to substitute about $150 million of imports over five years.
Thakkar emphasised that building an industrial base within Africa will create jobs and reduce costs. The company has already raised $450 million in local-currency financing to keep solar systems affordable.
“There are still nearly 500 million Africans without reliable power,” Thakkar said. “We plan to triple our distribution and connection rate soon.”
Through these efforts, Sun King continues to play a vital role in Africa’s off-grid solar market, driving economic growth and clean energy access across the continent.