The Association of European Development Finance Institutions (EDFI) through the Electrification Financing Initiative (ElectriFi), a European Union initiative supporting investments in electrification, plans to sign an over US$ 1.8M contract to support MyJouleBox project in Benin.
Spearheaded by MyJouleBox, an innovative company specialized in the commercialization, installation, and maintenance of PV solutions in Benin, the project aims to provide Solar Home Systems (SHS) in the West African country.
With this funding, the Benin Company plans to recruit 200 new employees that will help it create 31,000 new connections offering a sustainable and reliable source of energy to approximately 155,000 beneficiaries.
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MyJouleBox, since its inception back in 2012, has sold more than 27,000 systems for a total installed capacity of over 1.3 MWp, and now the company is looking to strengthen its market position in Benin and expand into the neighboring republics of Burkina Faso and Togo.
Benin energy sector at a glance
40% of Beninese citizens have access to electricity with a significant disparity between urban and rural areas which respectively have an access rate of 70% and 18%.
The reliability of electricity in the country, (which is reliant on biomass and imported petroleum products for 97% of its energy demand, with electricity accounting for 2% of net energy consumption) remains plagued by wide variations in voltage and frequent power cuts.
The Government is however building generation assets, pursuing IPP transactions, expanding transmission capacity, and modernizing its distribution network, while expanding access through the grid and off-grid connections to do away with this problem.
It also aims to achieve urban and rural electrification rates of 95% and 65% respectively by 2025, and also plans to achieve 24.6 % renewable energy in the energy mix within the same timeframe.
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