Rana Energy, a Nigerian startup building an AI-powered platform for clean energy, has closed a $3M pre-seed funding round to expand its operations. The company provides solar and battery storage systems to businesses on a subscription basis, aiming to tackle Africa’s reliance on expensive and polluting diesel generators.
The funding is a hybrid of $500,000 in equity and a $2.5M local currency green debt facility. The equity portion came from investors including Techstars, EchoVC Eco, and angel investors Chinedu Azodoh and Tayo Bamiduro, the co-founders of mobility startup MAX. The debt note was arranged by Optimum Global and backed by Nigerian asset manager FSDH Asset Management.
Founded in 2023 by engineers Abraham Mohammed and Mubarak Popoola, Rana Energy operates a “Clean Energy-as-a-Service” model. It targets a significant market inefficiency: an estimated 600 million Africans lack reliable electricity access, and businesses spend over $35B annually on backup power, predominantly from diesel.
A digital utility model
At the core of Rana’s operations is its Virtual Solar Network (VSN), an intelligent software ecosystem that manages the entire lifecycle of distributed energy assets. The platform uses AI to forecast energy demand for potential clients, aggregates solar and storage projects into portfolios for investors, and remotely manages the deployed systems to ensure reliability.
For customers, this translates to a subscription for clean power with no upfront installation costs.
“Before Rana, we were spending over ₦2.5 million ($1,650) monthly on diesel at our Physiotherapy clinic,” said Dr. Boroji Osindero, Medical Director at the Wellness Centre in Lagos. “Now, we have 24/7 clean power at 25% less cost, and our patients know they can count on us during emergencies.”
The tech behind the network
Rana’s VSN platform integrates several technologies to streamline its service:
- AI-driven Forecasting: Predicts energy demand to optimise the size and performance of solar-plus-storage systems.
- GIS and Drone Mapping: Identifies and evaluates rooftop and land-based solar potential in urban areas to speed up project origination.
- Asset Management: Provides tools for investors to digitally finance and monitor individual projects or entire portfolios.
- Real-time Monitoring: Tracks key performance metrics across its network of installations to maintain high uptime.
- Carbon Tracking: Offers verified data on carbon emissions reduction, with plans to integrate blockchain for transparent impact reporting.
“Execution is everything in this market, and Rana delivers at lightning pace,” said Mubarak Popoola, co-founder and CTO. “In just 18 months, we’ve deployed 1.3 MW of solar and storage capacity across Nigeria, achieving 99.9% uptime, reducing diesel dependence by over 80%, and slashing energy costs by up to 30% for our clients.”
The company’s installations range from commercial facilities to federal institutions, including a solar carpark at the National Defence College in Abuja.
Scaling with blended finance
The startup’s hybrid financing model is designed for scalability. Equity is used to fund technology development and team expansion, while the larger debt facility is deployed to finance the physical solar and battery assets for customers.
“We have shown that sub-1 MW clean energy systems, when aggregated, can attract institutional capital, deliver strong returns, and drive measurable impact,” said Abraham Mohammed, co-founder and CEO. “By blending venture equity with structured green debt financing, we have built a replicable model for Africa’s energy transition.”
This approach addresses a key challenge for cleantech hardware businesses in Africa: securing sufficient capital to scale asset-heavy operations.
“Rana represents everything we look for in climate infrastructure: exceptional founders solving a massive problem with breakthrough technology and innovative financing,” said Eghosa Omoigui, Managing Partner at EchoVC Eco. “Their AI-powered approach doesn’t just replace diesel with a clean substitute, it creates a neo-energy paradigm that will unlock billions in economic growth.”
What’s next?
With the new funding, Rana Energy plans to expand its asset base to 10 MW over the next 12 months. This expansion will target a diverse client base, including battery swap stations, hospitals, supermarkets, and industrial facilities.
The company also plans to enter new markets, with Ghana and Zambia as its initial targets beyond Nigeria. The planned 10 MW expansion is projected to avoid over 450,000 kg of CO₂ emissions annually.