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ZOLA Electric, an off-grid solar solutions provider, has announced plans to launch its clean, affordable and reliable, solar energy solutions in Nigeria. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands' capital, ZOLA Electric is the world’s first Solar-as-a-Service company, providing pay-as-you-go solar power to customers in Africa, notably in Rwanda, Tanzania Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.

Formerly called Off Grid Electric, the company said its entry into the Nigerian market is in line with its mission to use distributed renewable energy solutions to make clean, affordable and reliable power accessible for anyone.

“ZOLA Electric is a power solutions pioneer that is now one of the most trusted brands in Africa’s distributed renewable energy market,” Bill Lenihan, CEO of ZOLA, said on Tuesday. “We have successfully delivered our clean, affordable and reliable power solutions across Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Rwanda and Tanzania, and we are super excited to make our clean, affordable and reliable 24-hour power solutions available to Nigerian homes, businesses and organisations.”

ZOLA Electric had first mulled plans of expanding to Nigeria in September 2018. At the 2018 Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS), which held in the United States, ZOLA pledged to expand its PAYGo distributed solar energy model and launch an affordable renewable energy alternative in Nigeria. ZOLA’s target was to deliver clean energy access to one million households and businesses in Nigeria over the next three years, following the GCAS goal of energy access and driving the transition to clean renewable energy.

According to the statement, ZOLA currently has 200,000 installations and more than one million daily users across Africa. Lenihan explained that the expansion is focused on improving environmental, health and economic outcomes while driving the transition to clean, renewable energy.

“Nigeria is a rapidly expanding economic powerhouse, with population growth tipped to surpass the United States by 2050. It is Africa’s largest economy and biggest oil producer,” Lenihan said. “Despite this, the Nigerian electrical grid is unable to meet basic energy demands. Power from the grid is unreliable and expensive and this has driven more than 100 million Nigerians to rely on diesel generators to power their basic energy needs in their homes or apartments.”

According to Lenihan, the current deficit of electricity access in Nigeria affects up to 80 million people daily. ZOLA’s expansion will help Nigerian homes and businesses to access reliable 24-hour power with smart storage and solar for a monthly fee that is less than the average outlay on diesel generators.

“By combining our PAYGo micro-finance leasing and mobile money payments, ZOLA’s energy access model is financially inclusive and adaptable to every energy need and income,” Lenihan said.

Founded in 2010, ZOLA Electric makes solar energy accessible and affordable through micro-finance and mobile money payments. In 2016, Zola Electric won the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) Momentum for Change Award and the Zayed Future Energy Prize. Its investors include Tesla, General Electric, EDF Energy, Total and Helios Investment Partners.