Energy

XpressGas Limited is the fastest-growing and one of the largest LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) companies in Ghana.

The company was incorporated in 2009 and was granted a license by the National Petroleum Authority in 2010 to operate as an LPG Marketing Company. XpressGas currently owns 3 LPG refill stations, 23 LPG Bulk Road Vehicles (BRV-Trucks), and serves a network of 53 third-party owned stations across all the regions of Ghana.

The main focus of the business is on the peri-urban and rural areas of the country, and this is in line with the Government of Ghana’s stated objective to increase access to LPG by 50% in 2030.

Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) is increasingly becoming the preferred choice of fuel in the world and Ghana is moving in the same direction. The increase in patronage could be attributed to its affordability, efficiency and environmental friendliness. The impact potential of switching consumers from harmful traditional fuels such as firewood to LPG is significant.

The entrepreneur

The company is managed by a strong promoter who has built a well-structured business that has advanced up the ranks of the top LPG companies in Ghana within the span of just 8 years.

Mr. Kofi Nketsia-Tabiri brings over 18 years of investing, business development and entrepreneurship experience to the management of XpressGas. Prior to starting XpressGas, Mr Nketsia-Tabiri founded Patient Capital Partners, an energy project development and investment advisory firm that has undertaken several modern energy related projects for international organizations such as the World Bank, Triodos, African Development Bank, United Nations Environmental Programme, etc.

Kofi was the inaugural head of the business innovations unit in Africa at E+Co, the pioneering organization that funded over 250 clean energy investments in emerging markets before its restructuring in 2012. In 2017, Kofi was recruited as an Investment Consultant for the Africa Renewable Energy Scale Up Facility (ARESUF), under the auspices of Micro-Energy International and PROPARCO.

Partnership with IPAE 2

With support from I&P, XpressGas aims to:

•— Consolidate and cement its position in the B2B market

•— Accelerate the launch of the B2C cylinder recirculation model (CRM)

•— Improve health and safety standards

Expected Impacts

⇒— A company at the forefront in increasing LPG availability and access to consumers especially those in the rural areas who continue to suffer from Household Air Pollution (HAP)

Context: It is estimated that about 18% of households in Ghana use LPG as their primary source of cooking. The remaining 72% of households mostly depend on firewood and charcoal for cooking. Exposure to household air pollution is responsible for 16,600 deaths and the loss of 502,000 disability adjusted life-years annually.

⇒— LPG emits lower greenhouse gas emissions than alternatives, CO2 emissions are relatively low. Greenhouse gases are reduced by 5-16 times per prepared meal compared to coal.

⇒— Creation of over 300 direct and indirect jobs over the investment period with specialized training provided to staff

⇒— Contribution towards the development and structuring of the cylinder recirculation model in Ghana to create a safer environment for LPG distribution

Salgatech is a company operating in the renewable energy sector. It specialises in the production and installation of multifunctional cold rooms and ice machines that it markets in Burkina Faso.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Salgatech SARL was created in 2018 by Silvère SALGA. Inventor, innovator, writer and trainer, Silvère SALGA is a seasoned expert in entrepreneurship, research and development, and green energy. He is the author of several scientific works and discoveries such as, Tensis system, The Theory of Transforming Humanity and The Theory of the Changing Universe and has received several awards including the Thomas Sankara Medal for Invention and Innovation and the 2nd Prize for the Best Productive Energy Innovation of the Energy Week, and Renewable Energy in Africa (SEERA). 

CONTRIBUTION OF SINERGI BURKINA

Salgatech is supported by SINERGI BURKINA as part of the I&P Acceleration in Sahel programme. The main objective of this partnership is to :

• Relaunch and strengthen the production capacities of solar cold rooms 
• To set up a "cold landlord" service or service for renting solar cold room spaces.
• Set up an internal accounting system run by a professional.
• Strengthen the sales force

EXPECTED IMPACTS

• Consolidation and formalisation of 17 existing jobs, 6 of which are full-time and 12 new formal jobs for young people and women.
• Contribution to the economy through the payment of taxes to the tax administration
• Reduction of imports and/or the use of electric cold rooms with harmful consequences for the environment 
• Strengthen the agricultural and food sectors by reducing post-harvest losses.

About Sinergi Burkina

 Created in 2014, Sinergi Burkina is the first impact investment fund dedicated to financing and supporting SMEs and start-ups in Burkina Faso. Headed by Job Zongo, Sinergi Burkina is the second investment fund sponsored by Investisseurs & Partenaires as part of the I&P Développement 2 fund. The fund network currently includes a fund in Niger (Sinergi Niger), Côte d'Ivoire (Comoé Capital), Senegal (Teranga Capital) and Madagascar (Miarakap).  → To learn more about Sinergi Burkina

Jiro-Ve is a pioneering company in rural electrification in Madagascar, launched in 2014.

Jiro-Ve has come up with an innovative, inclusive micro franchise model to provide affordable and healthy lighting for marginalized communities. Its business model allows the company to rent out a rechargeable LED light for a price that is cheaper than candles or kerosene. For 250 Ariary per day (≈ 0,06 €) people get a fully charged light delivered to their doorstep, both incities and remote rural areas of Madagascar.

Jiro-Ve hires local entrepreneurs and uses existing networks, supporting and developing entrepreneurship.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Jiro Ve is managed by Rik Stamhuis, an entrepreneur of Dutch origin located in Madagascar since 2012.  He holds 48% of the company's capital.

Rik is a driven and energetic leader with years of experience working for social enterprises. Before founding Jiro-Ve, Rik worked in Kenya trying to find innovative ways of distributing renewable energy.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P

Thanks to funding from the program I&P Acceleration Technologies, Jiro-Ve plans to expand its activity, initially in Madagascar by distributing the new kits in larger quantities and targeting more regions.

The company aims to extend its offer to other regions of Africa later on.

EXPECTED IMPACTS

⇒ Jiro-Ve aims to eliminate poverty by helping local entrepreneurs to have a better income.

⇒ Jiro-Ve's model allows the most disadvantaged consumers to access a source of energy that is less polluting, less dangerous and less expensive than petroleum lamps.

⇒ According to the studies carried out by the company, each lamp used would avoid the emission of 0.37 tons of CO2 per year.

⇒ This energy source also has a positive impact on the health and well-being of users, by reducing the toxic fumes emitted by the candles and kerosene lamps that most target customers currently use.

About I&P Acceleration Technologies

Launched in 2019 with the support of the French Development Agency through its iniative Digital Africa, I&P Acceleration Technologies is a €2.5 million program that aims to finance and support some fifteen digital startups in Sub-Saharan Africa, with a focus on Western Africa, Central Africa and Madagascar. Click here to read more →

About Miarakap

Miarakap is the first impact fund dedicated to the financing and support SMEs and start-ups in Madagascar. Managed by Emmanuel Cotsoyannis, Miarakap is the fourth African fund sponsored by Investisseurs & Partenaires as part of its program I&P Development 2. The network currently includes impact funds specialized in SME-financing in Niger (Sinergi Niger), Burkina Faso (Sinergi Burkina), in Senegal (Teranga Capital) and Côte d'Ivoire (Comoé Capital). Click here to visit Miarakap's website →

Rensource is a distributed energy services company that delivers power and value-added services to SME clusters in Nigeria through ring-fenced, solar powered micro-utilities. In 2018, the company launched its first micro-utility project with financial backing from Paris-based NEoT Capital through its NEoT Offgrid Africa investment platform. The project is located at the Sabon Gari Market in Kano State and today provides clean, affordable and reliable energy to over 4,000 merchants, with an additional 8,000 set to go live by Q3 2019.

Rensource is Nigeria’s fastest growing provider of off-grid power. Over the next two years, the company seeks to rollout 11 additional micro-utility projects that have already been contracted and partially developed in some cases.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Ademola “Demmy” Adesina is a Nigerian entrepreneur with over 12 years’ experience across Africa, USA and Europe. He has focused on building or turning around early and growth stage enterprises for much of his career.

Ademola has led business development and corporate strategy for Aquifer, a London based investment company (Sainsbury Family Office). He joined Aquifer from the Rockefeller Foundation in New York, where he was a founding member of the Innovation for Development & Impact Investing initiatives that birthed the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN). Demmy began his career as an investment banker with JP Morgan.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P

I&P’s investment in Rensource aims to:

• Support the full deployment of additional micro-utilities to potentially reach over 200,000 end users in Nigeria by 2022

EXPECTED IMPACT

• Significant contribution to solving power crisis in Nigeria

COGELEC ENERGY is an engineering company based in Dakar, Senegal. The company is present in electrical engineering and line construction works, rural electrification and distribution of electromechanical equipment.

COGELEC ENERGY is focused on bringing energy for productive uses to rural areas in Senegal for the greater benefit of the Senegalese population. Within rural electrification, COGELEC ENERGY focuses on providing the most economical energy possible for productive use in rural communities, with a particular focus on bore wells in remote locations.

COGELEC ENERGY’s clients include governments with whom they partner long term to provide electricity access and services for rural areas, as well as industrial companies looking for the most economical solutions to build conventional grid connections or using renewable energy.

The Entrepreneur

Cogelec Energy is managed by Abdou Wahab Kane.

Partnership with Teranga Capital

Teranga committed alongside with Cogelec Energy to:

• Support the expansion of the logistical equipment and the investments in human resources to strengthen its capacity to execute increasingly complex projects

• Support Cogelec Energy in elaborating and executing its strategy with a view to improving its organizational efficiency and promoting growth

Expected Impacts

• Extend electricity access and services to rural areas

• Increase the competitiveness and energy efficiency of Senegalese economic players and give them access to sustainable energy solutions

PEG Africa is a young company which aims to bring off-grid solar energy access to rural and peri-urban communities in West Africa by providing pay-as-you-go (PAYG) solar home systems to rural and remote customers. The company has started its activities in Ghana.

The model of the company is based on the combination of technical, distribution, and financial innovations:

• Technical innovation: the product itself is a small solar kit allowing the client to light a few bulbs, recharge a phone, and listen to the radio. It is connected with the PEG management information system through mobile technology allowing the company to monitor remotely a number of items.  
• Distribution: the company is setting distribution points with dedicated sales teams around the country.
• Financial innovation: this is probably the most important innovation. The client is paying its solar system as he uses it through mobile money payment of a few Euros per month. If he doesn’t pay and recharge credit, the system is blocked and not usable by the client. After one year of payments, the client owns the product.

PEG has secured a licensing partnership with M-KOPA, the leading company in PAYG solar technology in Africa. M-KOPA has successfully deployed its products and methodology to more than 200,000 households in East Africa.

The entrepreneurs

Hugh Whalan, the CEO, has focused on energy and financing in West Africa for the last 6 years. He started the first crowd-funding site for energy, and a fast growing solar distribution company in Ghana, which he sold to a NY-based investor. Prior to his work in Africa, he was the director of business development for the largest US based carbon project developer.

Nate Heller, the Chief Operating Officer, has over 13 years of experience in international development, including stints with the UN, the Peace Corps, and multiple social enterprises. He spent 6 of those years building innovative distribution channels for poor consumers in West Africa.

Partnership with I&P

I&P committed alongside PEG to:

• Finance and support the company’s expansion drive in Ghana and the sub-region

• Help structure the business in its early stages and institute appropriate corporate governance

• Facilitate debt and grant capital fundraising for the company to meet its target objectives

Expected Impact

• Connect over 500,000 remote and rural households in West Africa to solar power within 5 years

• Create significant financial inclusion by making off-grid households into a knowable and attractive customer proposition

• Reduce carbon emissions by replacing traditional kerosene use with a cleaner source of power

• Grow local employment by partnering with large local sales teams to drive growth over multiple regions

Conergies designs, engineers, installs and provides maintenance for air conditioning and industrial cooling systems.

The group gathers two subsidiaries in Mali (RICA Services) and in Côte d'Ivoire (ARIC). Being comfortably settled in Mali, the group plans on a large-scaled deployment in Côte d'Ivoire where the construction market remains globally depressed. Around 80% of Abidjan towers need restoration and virtually no investment were made in the past 15 years within the sector. The local offer needs a structuration force which RICA is able to embody.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Mamadou Sanankoua graduated in Mechanics Engineering from Polytechnique Montreal and in International Project Management from the Ecole Supérieure de Commerce of Paris. His academic path thus combines technical and financial skills with business engineering experiences earned within great industrial firms (Schneider Electrics, Daikin Europe). He decided to take the lead in the family business then ran by his father in 2001 to pursue its leadership over the sub-region alongside with his brothers and a friend.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P

I&P has committed alongside with Conergies:

• To bring technical assistance resources needed to renew the Management Information System

• To support through marketing assistance and guide the company during its rebranding process

• To build up the governance

KEY IMPACTS

• A dozen jobs created in the new Ivorian subsidiary

• Awareness and expertise brought over efficient energy

• Health and security trainings for the employees

Created in 1980, CDS is a Mauritanian company involved in energy and water access for all and especially in the rural zones where the populations are deprived from this access.

Its activity is three-fold:

• Public service delegation : water and electricity distribution in partnership with state and local authorities
• Installment and maintenance for electro-mechanic works: potable water access, hybrid or solar systems, water treatment plants, network extension…
• Distribution of water and electricity equipment working on renewable energies: solar heater, refrigerator, wind turbines, immersed pumps…)

CDS is one of the companies featured in the project Small is Powerful

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Sidi Khalifou is graduated from Sup’Meca Paris where he volunteered at Engineer without Borders. He was a project manager for the GRET and for ECODEV an NGO he co-founded committed to local development and environmental issues in West Africa.

He joined CDS as a shareholder in 2007, then run by his father. He took the lead of the company in 2010.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P

I&P committed alongside with CDS

• To accompany the company’s development through additional public service delegations contracts

• To enable the company to sell and distribute equipment in rural areas

EXIT

In partnership with CDS’ promoter, Sidi Khalifou, I&P sold its shares in 2016 to Engie Rassembleurs d’Energies and the Monaco-based impact firm SADEV. Both these partners will continue to support CDS in its development strategy and impact objectives.

KEY IMPACTS

• 20 jobs created (2015 data) 

• 30 800 households given access to drinking water, which represents close to 1,400 irrigation systems set up by CDS

• Water and electricity access equipment sold in 2015: 423 solar kits, 59 solar water heaters and more than 20 pump stations 

• 17 national suppliers 

• Enhancement of renewable energy-powered practices

• Private sector strengthening and Knock-on effect on the economic environment (agriculture, manufacture…)