Electrification Financing Initiative (ElectriFI)

The new Electrification Financing Initiative (ElectriFI) aims to accelerate access to (rural) energy in developing countries by boosting private sector to yield business opportunities. Past efforts supporting rural electrification were predominantly grant-based and therefore not generating a leverage that would allow reaching the ambitious policy objectives, whilst the sustainability of projects was not optimal. ElectriFI aims at increasing the leverage of the EU efforts and resources as well as at ensuring sustainability through establishing a real partnership, geared by economic results, with beneficiaries and stakeholders. ElectriFI will support rural electrification investments that have strong features for scalability and will be flexible in allowing the support of different business models, utilities, mini-grids and will be open to the main actor, which is the private sector, and also to public or private institutions (including Local Authorities, Civil Society etc.) depending on the needs and opportunities in each targeted country/region. Unlike past support initiatives and apart from increasing leverage and sustainability, ElectriFI, by closing gaps created by market failures in the rural electrification finance in developing countries, will also provide for the repayment of the EU support in case investment projects will be successful. ElectriFI initial allocation will be EUR 75 million but depending on the response of the stakeholders, could grow considerably with additional funding from national or regional (including intra ACP) allocations in particular for countries and regions having selected energy, and access to energy, as a priority objective for their cooperation with the EU. Other donors and impact investors could also partner and contribute to ElectriFI resources. In due course, a funding platform may provide additional resources. ElectriFI will also establish links and synergies with any other parallel programmes and schemes promoting private sector investments in energy and energy access, in order to deliver the expected results.