The Breda-based B2B solar company will use the development-finance investment to build financing tools for distributors and launch two ecosystem programmes.
Spark, a Dutch B2B provider of modular solar home systems, has raised €2m ($2.3m) from CEI Africa, a development-finance fund focused on energy access in sub-Saharan Africa. The company said the capital will fund new financing initiatives for distribution partners and the first phase of two programmes, Spark Catalyse and Spark Connect.
A distributor-first model
Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Breda, Spark does not sell directly to households. It supplies local distributors in more than 23 countries with plug-and-play solar kits, pay-as-you-go technology, technical support and a digital management portal. The company says it has reached about 2m people in markets including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria and Madagascar.
Spark argues that its modular product design allows customers to start with a basic system and add components over time, reducing upfront cost. The company also runs Spark Invest, which offers payment terms to distributors that buy its equipment, and it has tested crowdfunding and other alternative financing structures for distribution partners.
Marcel van Heist, Spark’s managing director, said progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 7 — universal energy access — is “increasingly off track”. He said the World Bank’s Mission 300 programme, which aims to connect 300m people in Africa by 2030, was creating new opportunities for sector-wide change.
“CEI Africa’s EUR 2 million investment will support the next phase of Spark’s growth, supporting the development of next-generation financing initiatives, strengthen Spark’s long-term strategic growth and enable the rollout of the first phases of the Spark Catalyse and Spark Connect initiatives,” van Heist said.
Spark Catalyse and Spark Connect are intended to combine energy access with financial inclusion and economic resilience services, though the company did not provide detailed timelines or product descriptions.
CEI Africa was established in 2021 by KfW on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The Swiss Development Cooperation joined as a contributor in 2022. It is managed by Triple Jump and implemented with GreenMax Capital Group.
Steven Evers, managing director and CEO of Triple Jump, said: “At CEI Africa, we focus on supporting businesses that expand access to energy in a sustainable and scalable way across Sub-Saharan Africa.” He added that Spark’s modular design could make energy solutions more accessible while strengthening the commercial viability of last-mile distribution.
The deal is an example of development-finance capital being directed at distribution and working-capital gaps in off-grid solar, rather than only at consumer receivables. Spark’s model transfers customer acquisition and last-mile service costs to local partners, which reduces some operational risk but increases its dependence on those partners’ access to working capital. Currency volatility and high local borrowing costs remain constraints in several of its largest markets.
The €2m investment is small compared with later-stage climate-tech equity rounds, but it is aimed at building financial infrastructure around Spark’s distribution network. If Spark Catalyse and Spark Connect gain traction, they could make it easier for distributors to hold inventory, extend credit to households and expand into new areas, which may attract further development finance and commercial lending.
Spark did not disclose whether the CEI Africa investment was structured as equity, debt or a convertible instrument, and did not provide current revenue or profitability figures.