The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has committed up to $25 million to Acumen’s Hardest-to-Reach (H2R) Fund. he H2R Fund, which targets the electrification of 72 million people over the next ten years and aims to prevent the release of 5 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, is structured into three equity tranches each worth $60 million.

The PREO programme has committed £2.2 million to support 14 companies across sub-Saharan Africa. Selected from over 240 applications spanning 29 countries, each company will receive between £86,000 and £237,000 over one to two years, along with technical support.

Power Africa is awarding grants of $250,000 to Simusolar (US) and SureChill (UK) to distribute solar-powered irrigation and refrigeration solutions to underserved regions in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda to boost productive use of energy.

Equator Africa, a venture capital firm, has closed an additional $5 million from the International Financial Corporation (IFC) to support businesses and innovation in the African climate sector. This comes after securing an initial close of $40 million in April 2023 to bridge the persistent funding gap for climate tech startups.

M-Kopa has revealed a Sh5.22 billion cost of tracing defaulters, reflecting the challenge of sustaining its pay-as-you-go service model. The company successfully lobbied a tax tribunal to allow it to write off the millions on grounds that it would require 16 times the deafulted credit to recover it.

French energy giant TotalEnergies has announced plans to increase its oil and gas production until 2030, as it seeks to reassure investors about its fundamentals.