Renewvia Targets Four African Markets With $750m Mini-Grid Expansion

US-based renewable energy developer Renewvia Energy is preparing a major expansion of its African operations, with plans to invest approximately $750 million in solar-powered mini-grid infrastructure across Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The expansion forms part of a broader industry push to tackle Sub-Saharan Africa’s persistent electricity access gap through decentralised energy systems. According to company executives, the programme could deliver roughly 2.1 million new electricity connections across the four markets.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Renewvia has steadily expanded its presence in Africa through off-grid and mini-grid developments designed to serve rural communities and commercial customers beyond the reach of national transmission networks. The company currently operates 24 commercial mini-grids in Kenya and Nigeria, with generation capacities ranging from 100kW to 2.5MW.

Its customer base includes multinational and institutional clients such as Shell, United Bank for Africa and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

The planned rollout comes as governments, development finance institutions and private investors intensify efforts to address energy poverty across the continent. Nearly 600 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa still lack access to electricity, making the region the world’s largest underserved power market.

Momentum behind rural electrification has accelerated under Mission 300, a joint initiative backed by the World Bank and the African Development Bank, which aims to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030.

Alongside its broader regional expansion, Renewvia is pursuing $45 million in concessional financing to support projects in Kakuma and Dadaab, two of the world’s largest refugee settlements. The funding would be used to expand a metro grid in Kakuma and develop a renewable energy facility in Dadaab, while helping to maintain affordable tariffs through longer-term, low-interest financing structures.
The company estimates that expanded generation capacity in the two settlements could increase electricity access fivefold, potentially benefiting more than 550,000 residents.

Renewvia has already established local operating entities in Congo, Uganda, Rwanda and Ethiopia to advance early-stage project development. Among the projects under consideration is a mini-grid installation in Baraka, a lakeside town on the shores of Lake Tanganyika with an estimated population of 270,000.

The expansion highlights the growing role of private-sector mini-grid developers in Africa’s energy transition, particularly in regions where grid extension remains commercially or logistically challenging.