Nigeria’s huge electricity deficit has attracted another major clean energy investment, with WeLight raising $31 million to expand solar mini-grids and bring electricity to millions of underserved rural communities across the country.
- Nigeria’s huge electricity deficit has attracted another major clean energy investment, with WeLight raising $31 million to expand solar mini-grids...
- WeLight announced on June 24, 2026, that the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank Group’s private-sector arm, has joined...
- IFC Investment to Expand WeLight Solar Mini-Grids in Nigeria The company, which currently operates in Madagascar and Mali, raised €27 million...
- The latest funding will accelerate deployment of the model across Nigeria.
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WeLight announced on June 24, 2026, that the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank Group’s private-sector arm, has joined its shareholder base as part of the funding round. The investment will support the company’s expansion into Nigeria, where millions still lack access to reliable electricity.
IFC Investment to Expand WeLight Solar Mini-Grids in Nigeria
The company, which currently operates in Madagascar and Mali, raised €27 million ($31 million) from IFC alongside its founding shareholders—Axian Group Ltd., Sagemcom SAS and Norfund AS, the Norwegian development finance institution that co-founded WeLight in 2018.
Founded to deliver electricity to communities beyond the reach of national grids, WeLight now operates nearly 190 solar mini-grids serving more than 800,000 people.
Its mini-grid model combines solar power, battery storage and local electricity distribution to provide reliable electricity to off-grid communities. The latest funding will accelerate deployment of the model across Nigeria.
“IFC’s investment marks a major milestone for WeLight. It will help us build a pan-African platform covering the continent’s main rural electrification markets and bring together leading partners to support large-scale expansion,” CEO Romain de Villeneuve said.
Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo have two of Africa’s largest electricity access gaps. According to Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report 2026, Nigeria has about 87 million people without electricity, while DR Congo has 85 million.
With IFC joining its shareholder base, WeLight plans to deploy more than 1,000 solar mini-grids and provide electricity to nearly 10 million people by 2030.
The company said the investment will accelerate its expansion into new markets, strengthen its operations and support the next phase of large-scale growth, offering more reliable electricity to rural communities that remain underserved by national power grids.