The International Finance Corporation (IFC), in partnership with the Government of Canada, has announced a $5m investment in Husk Power Systems Nigeria to support the deployment of 108 solar hybrid mini grids across underserved communities in Northern Nigeria.
The initiative aims to deliver reliable, affordable, and renewable electricity to approximately 115,000 Nigerians, including households and small businesses, through an estimated 28,750 new electricity connections.
Announced in Lagos on Thursday, the investment represents the first financing under the IFC’s Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) Platform — a $200m debt facility launched in November 2024 to catalyse private-sector-driven electrification across West and Central Africa.
The $5m funding package includes a senior loan of $2.5m from IFC’s own account and a concessional subordinated loan of $2.5m provided through the Canada-IFC Renewable Energy Program for Africa.
The facility is structured as a revolving loan, allowing Husk to draw, repay, and reuse the funds throughout the duration of the project, improving financial flexibility and project scalability.
Husk’s solar mini-grid initiative, with an overall project cost of around $25m, is expected to significantly accelerate access to clean energy in regions suffering from chronic energy poverty.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, still faces one of the largest electricity access deficits in the world, especially in off-grid and rural areas.
“This investment is an innovative approach to tackling one of Africa’s most pressing challenges—energy access,” said Ethiopis Tafara, Regional Vice President for Africa at the IFC.
“By partnering with Husk, a globally recognised renewable energy developer, and launching the first project under the DARES Platform, we are not only addressing Nigeria’s urgent energy needs but also establishing a replicable, scalable model for the continent.”
The DARES Platform complements the World Bank-financed Nigeria DARES Project, a separate but aligned $750m initiative launched in December 2023. Implemented by Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency (REA), the national project targets the delivery of decentralised renewable energy solutions to over 17.5 million people nationwide.
Husk Nigeria’s Country Director, Olu Aruike, emphasised the importance of the partnership, stating, “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.”
Husk’s co-founder and CEO, Manoj Sinha, described the financing structure as 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 project underscores growing international and private-sector commitment to bridging Nigeria’s energy access gap and reinforces the role of renewable energy in driving inclusive, sustainable development in emerging economies.
