Inspired Evolution, an Africa-focused investment advisory firm that specializes in the clean energy sector, led a US$41 million equity investment by its Evolution II Fund and other consortium partners into d.light. Evolution II invested US$18 million alongside US$10.6 million from the Dutch Development Bank FMO, US$7.5 million from Swedfund and US$5 million from Norfund.
This latest funding, which enables expansion of d.light’s solar and Pay-Go consumer finance business in Africa, brings the total amount of equity and debt that d.light has raised in the past two years to over US$100 million. Wayne Keast, Managing Partner at Evolution II said,” We are excited to partner with d.light, the market leader in the portable solar product and off-grid solar home system market, to support the expansion of their Pay-Go solar business throughout Africa which will help address the needs of more than 600 million people that do not have access to electricity”.
d.light co-founder and CEO Ned Tozun said, “We are thrilled to have Evolution II as our newest and largest funding partner in the d.light family”. “The Inspired Evolution team’s energy expertise, strong network and investor base adds significant value to the work of d.light, allowing us to expand our product line, launch in new markets, and reach more customers.”
With a commanding market share in emerging markets in both Africa and Asia, the company’s revenue and profitability continue to accelerate at an impressive growth rate. This investment combined with solid debt financing and receivables funding solutions will put the company on an even steeper growth trajectory.
Wayne Keast added, “this new capital and receivable funding will provide innovative financing for solar power products to a vast number of previously unbanked people in emerging and growth markets”.
Since its founding in 2007, d.light has provided solar energy to more than 88 million people in 62 countries. Their extensive product line ranges from extremely affordable portable solar lanterns to solar home systems that can power multiple lights, mobile phones, and small appliances, including a flat-screen television. d.light’s solar solutions have won multiple international awards for their innovation and design and are sold through more than 30,000 outlets around the world—the largest existing distribution network for these types of products.
With a strong emphasis on product quality and customer service since its earliest days, d.light has built up a loyal customer base in emerging markets. d.light continues to sell profitably hundreds of thousands of units per month, while maintaining excellent quality at scale. Its pay-go financing system has among the lowest delinquency rates in the industry. The company is led by a strong team of deeply experienced, internationally recognized leaders and highly committed, talented local staff.
About Inspired Evolution and Evolution II Fund Inspired Evolution, investment advisor to Evolution I and Evolution II Funds, is a specialised clean energy infrastructure and resource efficiency investment advisory platform with offices in Cape Town, London, Nairobi and Mauritius. Inspired Evolution has been involved in developing and financing more than 1,000 MW of renewable energy infrastructure generation projects across Sub-Saharan Africa.
Evolution II Fund’s current investors include the Dutch Development Bank FMO, the Global Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Fund (“GEEREF”), Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (“SIFEM”) managed by Obviam, Quantum Power, African Development Bank (“AfDB”), Swedfund and the Finnish Fund for Industrial Cooperation (“Finnfund”), For more information, please visit www.inspiredevolution.co.za
About d.light
Founded in 2007, d.light manufactures and distributes award-winning solar lighting and power products designed to serve the more than 2 billion people globally without access to reliable electricity. Through five distribution hubs in East Africa, West Africa, India, Southeast Asia, and the United States, d.light has impacted over 88 million lives with its products. d.light is dedicated to providing the most reliable, affordable, and accessible solar lighting and power systems for the developing world, with the goal of reaching 100 million people by 2020. For more information, please visit www.dlight.com.
Media Contact
For Inspired Evolution: [email protected] / [email protected] For d.light: [email protected]
