Africa Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM) is investing $31m (€27m) for a minority stake in solar systems business to help expand off-grid solar electricity into parts of east and central Africa.
AIIM, though its African Infrastructure Investment Fund 3, is investing the amount in BBOXX’s operations in Rwanda, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo for an undisclosed minority stake.
The investment will help BBOXX to install two million solar systems by 2022, bringing electricity to 10m people in these African countries.
Mansoor Hamayun, the CEO and co-founder of BBOXX, said: “This latest deal with AIIM shows BBOXX’s commitment to mobilising greater investment and capital in the off-grid sector, through partnering with major global companies.
“AIIM’s investment will turbo-charge our operations in Rwanda, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo. This will allow us to scale rapidly and continue to drive disaggregation in what has traditionally been a vertically integrated market.”
Jurie Swart, the CEO of Africa Infrastructure Investment Managers said: “BBOXX shares our vision to remove barriers to economic growth and facilitate the development of Africa’s economies.
“It is also telling that an infrastructure fund like ours is backing distributed solar through investing in a company of the calibre of BBOXX. It reflects both the ambition of BBOXX and the maturity of the off-grid sector.”
AIIM is an infrastructure-focused private equity fund manager and a member of Old Mutual Alternative Investments.
