Millions of Nigerians live in small villages where the grid never came. A UK development investor is now putting $7 million behind a firm that wants to bring them power faster.
Okra Solar, a mesh-grid technology firm focused on Nigeria, has secured a $7 million debt facility from British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution. The money will let Okra buy equipment for about 150,000 new connections. That could bring electricity to as many as 750,000 people in rural Nigeria for the first time. Okra says the facility will also cut delivery time for equipment from four months to about two.
The need is large. BII says Nigeria has one of the world’s biggest power gaps. An estimated 90 million people lack reliable and affordable electricity. Many live in small, spread-out communities. Classic mini-grids cost too much to build there. Solar home systems often cannot run a mill, a shop or a freezer. Mesh-grids aim to fill that gap. They mix solar panels, batteries and smart controls. Nearby homes and shops can then share power at low cost.
Okra Solar was founded in 2016 by Afnan Hannan, the chief executive, and Damian Veling, the chief technology officer. It sells its technology to energy developers. They use it to power off-grid communities at scale. Okra says its mesh-grids can cut distribution costs by up to 60%. It also says they can be 70% faster to deploy than normal grid extension. Those are the company’s own claims.
| Product | What it does |
|---|---|
| Okra Sprout | A rugged hub that gives up to 3.6kW to power mills, shops and freezers. |
| Okra Leaf | A low-cost smart meter that gives 150W for lights, fans and phone charging. |
| OkraNet | A wireless network that links hundreds of homes through one gateway. |
| Okra Harvest | A software platform for billing, issue alerts and appliance finance. |
Okra says OkraNet, built on the Wi-SUN protocol, can cut data costs by up to 90%.
Why debt, and why now? The facility gives Okra flexible cash to buy parts up front and in bulk. Hannan explained the old way. Until now, Okra ordered parts only after a deal had closed, in batches of a few thousand. With BII’s money, it can buy batteries, solar panels and other slow-to-arrive parts early. “Every month a project is delayed is another month a community goes without power,” he said. He added that equipment now reaches Nigeria in less than a third of the time.
BII’s Geoffrey Manley said the right type of finance can matter as much as the technology. He leads infrastructure and climate debt for Africa and South Asia. He said the facility will help Okra buy key parts earlier and in bigger lots. That should cut costs and speed up delivery. BII also believes it will show that mesh-grids can pay their way. It hopes they become a bigger part of Africa’s clean energy market.
The scale-up is steep. Okra now serves more than 13,000 households, with over 2.3MW installed. The new facility could lift its connections more than ten times. Okra last raised money in September 2023, when it closed a Series A of more than $12 million. The round included $7.85 million in equity led by At One Ventures. FMO, Susquehanna, Autodesk Foundation and King Philanthropies took part. EDFI gave the debt.
The deal also fits a wider push. Nigeria is growing clean local power through programmes such as DARES. The Rural Electrification Agency runs it, with World Bank support. Mesh-grids qualify, and DARES pays for results when new homes get connected. Jonny Baxter, the British Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, said reliable power is key to growth and jobs. He called the deal a sign of the UK-Nigeria partnership.
Why it matters: Power is the base of almost every business. A baker needs it to run an oven, and a shop needs it for a freezer. When a village finally gets steady electricity, new trades start and old ones grow. A deal like this also shows how climate finance can move from grants to loans that scale with a company. If Okra delivers, it could give other energy startups a model to follow.
What to watch next: how fast Okra turns the money into real connections, which developers it signs, and whether costs and delivery times fall as promised. Also watch how many mesh-grid projects win funding under DARES.
Sources: African-Startups report on Okra Solar’s BII debt facility; Africa Energy on Okra Solar’s 2023 debt and equity Series A; Deal Street on Okra Solar’s $12M raise.
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