Mirova, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers, has announced a significant financing initiative for KOKO, a company specializing in clean cooking solutions. This financing comes in the form of a scalable carbon finance debt facility, provided by the Mirova Gigaton Fund, which will empower KOKO to expand its innovative residential energy utility model across Kenya and Rwanda.
In sub-Saharan Africa, over 850 million people rely on traditional cooking methods, such as firewood and charcoal. These practices not only release harmful pollutants into the environment but also contribute to the climate crisis, resulting in approximately 3.7 million premature deaths each year due to smoke inhalation and indoor air pollution. This issue disproportionately affects vulnerable populations, including women and children. Therefore, a continent-wide transition to clean and modern fuels is essential to address these pressing challenges.
KOKO is at the forefront of this transition, actively working to reduce the reliance on charcoal by providing sustainable bioethanol cooking fuel to over 1.3 million households in Kenya and Rwanda. The company distributes this fuel through a sophisticated network of KOKO Fuel ATMs, which are strategically located in thousands of corner stores. The carbon revenues generated from this initiative are shared with households as a non-government energy subsidy, making it feasible for even the most economically disadvantaged families to switch to cleaner cooking solutions.
John Kimotho, the Investment Director at Mirova Kenya, expressed enthusiasm for the partnership, stating;
We are proud to support KOKO’s transformative bioethanol cooking fuel technology platform, which aligns perfectly with the Mirova Gigaton Fund’s focus on innovative solutions to tackle climate challenges in emerging countries. This investment aims to not only reduce emissions from cooking but also combat deforestation by decreasing dependence on charcoal. Through this partnership, we are advancing scalable, sustainable solutions for a greener future.
Greg Murray, CEO and co-founder of KOKO, also shared his thoughts on the collaboration, saying;
We are pleased to have an asset manager of Mirova’s caliber on board to support our continued impact. Solving the charcoal curse is one of the grand challenges of development, and leveraging compliance carbon markets to enable a non-government consumer energy subsidy is an idea whose time has finally arrived. We look forward to working together with the Mirova team for the long term.
This partnership between Mirova and KOKO represents a significant step toward promoting sustainable energy solutions in sub-Saharan Africa, addressing both environmental and health challenges while enhancing the quality of life for millions of households.
