Solar energy provider, Westa Solar, has announced the expansion of its business in Nigeria with a mezzanine debt of €1.5million facilitated by the African and Austrian Investment Fund for SMEs (AAIF).
The company is a joint venture between solar home systems provider Oolu Solar and RP Global, a renewable energy investment company.
Said to be very active with commercial and industrial (C&I) customers, Westa Solar said in a statement last weekend that this debt was taken out with the Austrian Development Bank (OeEB).
The resources for this financing come from the Investment Fund for African and Austrian SMEs (AAIF), which was set up by the Austrian ministry of finance and is managed by the OeEB.
With this funding, Westa Solar said it intends to accelerate its activities in Nigeria. In the country, the company finances and installs solar photovoltaic power plants for commercial and industrial (C&I) customers.
The company, led locally by Kolawole Akinboye as country manager, is already well established in Nigeria with numerous commercial and industrial projects.
On the heels of its OeEB loan, the company is also announcing the commissioning of a solar photovoltaic system for a factory owned by Sacvin Nigeria, a producer of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes for electrical systems and water pipes.
The solar plant that powers its factory in Kano in northern Nigeria has a capacity of 350 kWp. Westa Solar, which has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Sacvin Nigeria, plans to expand the capacity of this rooftop solar system to 1mwp by the end of 2022.
The solar plant “is expected to save Sacvin more than N600million (about $1.44million) over the next 15 years and support its long-term growth ambitions,” says Kolawole Akinboye.
Speaking during the announcement, Jogesh Kathwani, director, Sacvin Nigeria, said: “We take great pride in being good stewards of the environment and are delighted about this partnership with Westa Solar to install solar PV solutions for our operations at the substantially lower energy costs offered by this technology.
“This project would help us save significantly on our power costs, reduce our carbon emissions and achieve our sustainability goals.”
These developments are coming at a time when renewable energy experts have raised concerns over the continuous inadequacy of the nation’s grid towards meeting electricity demands in the country, especially as it is badly desired in the manufacturing sector.
With Nigeria’s peak generation capacity put at 5,300mw and daily power demand estimated at 17,520mw, the on-grid electricity supply is insufficient to meet the demand.
Addressing this setback, Westa Solar’s Kolawole Akinboye, reiterated the impact in bringing sustainable development to the nation’s energy challenges.
Akinboye further added that in order to provide sustainable development of renewable energy in Nigeria, Westa solar’s solar hybrid system is a great solution for businesses future growth and profitability.
“As a C&I solar developer, we have the vision to make a huge difference in solving the energy needs of manufacturers and the heavy industries.
Our solar hybrid systems are a great solution for businesses with high energy needs and our systems are fully customized to meet client demand.”
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