Kenya-based clean cookstove manufacturer Burn has landed a fresh $5 million injection from the African Development Bank’s (AfDB) Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA), as part of a broader $10 million financing package aimed at accelerating access to electric cooking in East and Southern Africa.
The funding will support the rollout of Burn’s Electric Cooking Expansion Program (BEEP), which aims to deploy over 115,000 induction cookers to grid-connected, low-income households in Kenya, Uganda and Zambia that currently rely heavily on charcoal and other polluting fuels.
The AfDB, through SEFA, is providing a $4 million reimbursable grant, while the remaining funding comes from a $5 million senior loan from the Spark+ Africa Fund and $1 million in equity from Burn Manufacturing itself. A special purpose vehicle (SPV) will channel these funds to implement the program, manage distribution, and operate the carbon finance structure behind the project.
Burn’s approach blends carbon-backed subsidies with pay-as-you-go (PAYGo) financing models to make its ECOA induction cookers more accessible. Upfront costs are reduced significantly for consumers, while repayment is partially recovered through the sale of carbon credits on the voluntary market. These credits will be owned by the SPV and monetised to sustain the initiative and offer investor returns.
“This marks the Bank’s first carbon finance transaction of its kind,” said Dr. Daniel Schroth, Director for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency at the African Development Bank. “SEFA is playing a critical role in mitigating carbon market risks and enhancing the program’s financial sustainability.”
The initiative is positioned within SEFA’s energy efficiency focus area, aligning with the AfDB’s New Deal on Energy for Africa and its Mission 300 goal of delivering clean cooking solutions to 300 million Africans. It also adds to AfDB’s growing experimentation with carbon markets as a lever to unlock private-sector innovation in climate-related infrastructure.
Burn, founded in 2011 and now operating across more than 10 African countries, has long been a pioneer in the clean cooking sector. Its expansion into internet-connected induction cookers marks a strategic shift from biomass-based technologies towards fully electric, zero-emission solutions.
“We are honoured to receive this catalytic investment,” said Peter Scott, Burn’s Founder and CEO. “This milestone enables Burn to rapidly scale our IoT-enabled induction stove across Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia, providing low-income households with a zero-emission, digitally monitored alternative to charcoal and wood.”
Scott emphasised that the integration of carbon financing and mobile-enabled Pay-As-You-Cook models is evidence that electric cooking, once seen as out of reach for Africa’s low-income households, can in fact be deployed affordably and at scale.
Beyond the environmental and health benefits of displacing charcoal and biomass, the program is also expected to generate local jobs and strengthen supply chains in the participating countries. According to SEFA, the program’s structure is designed to be replicable in other regions, potentially setting a new standard for clean cooking initiatives across the continent.
The transaction also highlights a broader trend: development finance institutions are increasingly leaning on innovative financing mechanisms, such as carbon-linked repayment structures, to crowd in private capital and share risk in last-mile infrastructure markets.
Burn’s deal may serve as a proof of concept for future carbon-financed energy access programs, particularly as Africa’s voluntary carbon market gains traction amid global climate finance negotiations.