MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oolu Solar of Senegal Raises $8.5m in Equity with Participation from All On, DPI Energy, Gaia Impact, Persistent, RP Global

Oolu Solar, a Senegal-based startup aiming to provide affordable solar energy in West Africa, recently closed its Series B round of funding at USD 8.5 million, with Austria-based RP Global acting as the lead investor. Other participants included US-based Persistent Energy Capital; All On, which is backed by Royal Dutch Shell; France-based Gaia Impact Fund; and Singapore-based DPI Energy Ventures.

Oolu, which was founded in 2015 by Nilmi Senaratna and Daniel Rosa, provides solar panel kits with storage capacity for after-dark use. As of 2020, Oolu has enabled solar energy in 60,000 homes in Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso and Nigeria. With the completion of this funding round, Oolu’s investment inflows total USD 11.7 million since its inception.

Founded in 1991, RP Global first focused on developing, funding and operating hydroelectric and wind-energy projects. It has developed 35 power plants as of 2020.

By Eha Joshi, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

Techpoint Africa article on Oolu
https://techpoint.africa/2020/12/15/oolu-solar-raises-8-5m-series-b

Sun-Connect article on Oolu
https://www.sun-connect-news.org/news/details/press-release-oolu-a-west-africa-based-solar-pay-as-you-go-distributor-raises-85-million-in-ser

Oolu homepage
https://oolusolar.com

RP Global homepage
https://www.rp-global.com

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