Capital increase takes responsAbility Renewable Energy Holding to USD 120 m

Zurich, 17 December 2019 — responsAbility Renewable Energy Holding (rAREH), the Nairobi-based renewable energy company focusing on Sub-Saharan Africa, has attracted USD 48 m in new funding from all of its existing shareholders. The capital round has seen KfW on behalf of two German ministries, Norfund, the Nordic Development Fund and responsAbility Investments increase rAREH’s assets by 65% to over USD 120 m, allowing the company to further scale its activities of sustainably fighting energy poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa by developing, financing, owning and operating small-scale renewable energy plants.

rAREH was established in 2013 via the support of two German Ministries – the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) – both investing via the German Development Bank (KfW). The investor base today also includes the Norwegian Investment Fund for Developing Countries Norfund, the Nordic Development Fund and rAREH’s investment manager responsAbility Investments.

The rAREH portfolio consists of six operational hydro power plants with a total capacity of 41.4 MW. Two additional plants representing 28.8 MW are currently under construction, and the 25-strong team of experienced investment professionals, developers, engineers and E&S specialists are developing a 265 MW pipeline across various countries in the region.

In line with rAREH’s main impact objective of fighting energy poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa, rAREH-owned power plants produce 204 GWH of renewable energy every year, supplying 1.5 m people with clean power and avoiding 138,300 tonnes of CO2 emissions on a yearly basis. In addition, rAREH provides 700 jobs during construction and operation and, by developing a young team of mostly African professionals, contributes to developing the skill sets required to further scale the development of renewable energy projects in Sub-Saharan Africa.

rAREH Managing Director Joseph Nganga is delighted with this vote of confidence from the company’s Board and shareholders: “2019 has been a successful year for rAREH which has seen the company transition from developer to operator of renewable energy power plants. This capital increase confirms that rAREH has left its challenging start-up phase behind. With a productive portfolio and an experienced team working on a promising pipeline, we are prepared to embrace the opportunities that renewable energy development in Sub-Saharan Africa presents for shareholders, local communities and our climate.”

About responsAbility Renewable Energy Holding (rAREH)

rAREH is a renewable energy company focusing on Sub-Saharan Africa. Headquartered in Nairobi, the company finances, develops, owns and operates renewable energy projects of up to 50 MW across the various stages of development. The rAREH portfolio currently includes six operational solar and hydro power plants which account for 41.4 MW. The team of 25 experienced investment professionals, developers, engineers and E&S specialists is furthermore constructing two more plants and developing a 265 MW pipeline. 

rAREH was established in 2013 via the support of two German Ministries – the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) - both investing via the German Development Bank (KfW). The investor base today includes the Norwegian investment fund for developing countries, Norfund and the Nordic Development Fund (NDF). rAREH is managed by Swiss impact asset manager responsAbility Investments.

About responsAbility Investments

A leading impact asset manager with a 16-year track record, responsAbility manages USD 3 bn of assets invested in 450 ESG-managed high-impact companies across 90 emerging economies. Since the company's inception in 2003, responsAbility-managed funds have invested over USD 10 bn in private debt and private equity to companies in the sectors of climate finance, sustainable food and financial inclusion whose business models directly support the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

responsAbility is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, and has local offices in Bangkok, Geneva, Hong Kong, Lima, Mumbai, Nairobi, Oslo, Paris and Tbilisi. Owned by various reputable Swiss and international financial institutions, private investors and its own employees, responsAbility is registered with the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA.