Economy
Okra Solar Raises $12m to Boost Mesh-Grid Electrification
By Adedapo Adesanya
Okra Solar, known for pioneering mesh-grid technology, has closed a Series-A round of financing to scale mesh-grid technology with more than $12 million of fresh financing in debt and equity.
The company, which provides IoT-enabled hardware and software to last-mile energy companies so they can profitably energize remote off-grid communities, raised $7.85 million on equity led by At One Ventures, along with FMO, Susquehanna Private Equity Investments LLLP, Autodesk Foundation and King Philanthropies. The debt financing was provided by EDFi.
During the Series-A fundraising round, Okra also leveraged the support of GetInvest EU, a European programme that mobilizes investment in renewable energy in developing countries.
The Abuja-based company told Business Post that it will use the fresh injection to scale the technology in rural areas where scalability is highly sensitive to cost viability, mesh-grids present a compelling solution to energy developers.
Mesh grids enable solar power to be generated at the source of individual homes, where excess power is then redistributed by Okra’s smart algorithms from one connection to the next to optimize utilization. What makes mesh grids unique from traditional mini-grids or grid extensions is that rather than sending power long distances from a centralized generation house, power only travels between neighbouring houses. This hyper-decentralized implementation reduces the cost of distribution (cables and poles) by up to 90 per cent while maximizing up-time and power availability.
This could potentially help reduce the staggering 700 million people worldwide still living without access to electricity, and with status quo efforts, this number will increase by 2030.
The world is also facing widespread copper shortages, and this has created an opportunity for mesh grids, a technology that has rapidly established itself as a game-changer in this industry.
For Okra, its Business-2-Business (B2B) model supplies technology to last-mile energy utilities, who then energize last-mile households, a core need that can impact livelihoods in the Global South.
Speaking on this, Okra’s CEO, Afnan Hannan, said, “It’s clear that mesh grids are the most efficient way to achieve last-mile electrification. It starts by ensuring off-grid people have access to basic services such as lighting, e-cooking, and water pumping, and next, to have all of these people connect to the global digital economy. Now we need the regulations to keep up with exponential technology advancement for us to hit 100 per cent electrification by 2030.”
On the part of investors, Marieke Roestenberg, Manager of the FMO Ventures Programme, said, “FMO is proud to partner with Okra on their pioneering journey to leverage mesh-grid technology to help electrify rural areas and provide affordable power to last-mile households and businesses. We look forward to our collaboration with the Okra team and will actively leverage our value-added services to support their scaling ambitions.”.
Okra has also made updates to its product offerings, including automated network planning software using geospatial data and monitoring of commercial performance down to the asset level. On the hardware side, Okra Pods are now stackable, so power output can be increased from 1.2kW AC up to 4.8kW AC power output. The latest version of the pods will also enable mesh grids to be inter-connectable to existing grid infrastructure.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange opened the week on a sad note after it depreciated by 0.41 per cent on Monday, April 14.
The loss was influenced by the decline in the share price of Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc during the session by N1.80 to close at N20.90 per unit compared with the N22.70 per unit it closed last Friday.
This brought down the market capitalisation of the trading platform by N7.78 billion to N1.911 trillion from N1.919 trillion as the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) was also pulled down by 13.28 points to 3,264.29 points from the previous session’s 3,277.57 points.
Business Post reports that the bourse crumbled yesterday despite two securities on the platform finishing on the gainers’ chart.
UBN Property Plc appreciated by 19 Kobo on Monday to sell for N2.17 per share versus the preceding session’s N1.98 per share, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained 8 Kobo to settle at N35.63 per unit, in contrast to last Friday’s N35.55 per unit.
Yesterday, there was a 99.7 per cent decline in the volume of securities traded by the market participants to 436,357 units from the 152.3 million units recorded in the previous trading day.
There was also a 99.8 per cent fall in the value of transactions to N10.1 million from N4.6 billion, while the number of deals increased by 218.8 per cent to 51 deals from 16 deals.
At the close of business, Impresit Bakolori Plc remained the most active stock by volume (year-to-date) with 533.9 million units valued at N520.9 million, trailed by Okitipupa Plc with 153.6 million units worth N4.9 billion, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 71.2 million units sold for N24.2 million.
Okitipupa Plc was the most traded stock by value (year-to-date) with 153.6 million worth N4.9 billion, followed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 14.7 million units sold for N566.9 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 533.9 million units valued at N520.9 million.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Offices of a popular Ponzi scheme operator, CBEX, in Ibadan and a few other places in Nigeria have been looted by some aggrieved investors.
This followed news that the company has shut down its services, with funds of several investors trapped.
Last week, there were speculations that CBEX has crashed following the inability of members to withdraw their funds.
The company quickly dispelled this, noting that it locked the wallets of its investors because of the bonuses gifted members, which must be used for trading before withdrawal.
CBEX, thereafter, assured that from Tuesday, April 15, 2025, members of the Ponzi scheme would be able to withdraw their funds without ease.
However, on Monday, it was gathered that funds in the accounts of investors were wiped off, with a notice to members that they would only be access their money upon the payment of a reactivation fee, a similar pattern of other defunct operators.
“All accounts need to undergo the following verification steps to ensure their authenticity.
“For accounts with funds below $1,000 before any losses, a deposit of $100 is required.
“For accounts with funds exceeding $1,000, a deposit of $200 is required.
“Additionally, please keep your deposit receipts to ensure you can prove the authenticity of the account during future withdrawal reviews,” the message from CBEX stated.
This development shattered the hopes of some investors, triggering a looting spree of the company’s offices.
Some videos of the internet showed moments some irate youth stormed the Ibadan office of the organisation, carting away with some valuables, including office items and others.
Many Nigerians have expressed shock at the level of acceptance of the Ponzi scheme in the country despite the harrowing experience of MMM some years ago.
Business Post reports that some weeks ago, a similar Ponzi scheme operator, Cheersway, went away with investors’ funds after it claimed its platform was hacked.
Just like CBEX, it asked members to pay a reactivation fee of their exact level, which ranges from $50, $150, $400, and $1,000, to have access to their money, but most of those who paid were never granted any access until the company folded up.
Also, those who invested in a new investment vehicle it came up with, TikTok Shop, could not receive their capital and return-on-investment as promised.
It later assured investors that it would move them to a new company established last month known as C&P Capital, noting that they would get their funds back after the new organisation makes profit, probably after two years of operations.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira further strengthened against the US Dollar at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Monday, April 14, by N5.83 or 0.36 per cent to settle at N1,605.25/$1, in contrast to the N1,611.08/$1 it was traded in the previous session, which was last Friday.
Equally, the local currency appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official FX market during the session by N34.55 to quote at N2,056.03/£1 versus the preceding trading day’s value of N2,090.58/£1 and gained N45.66 on the Euro to finish at N1,770.14/€1 compared with the N1,815.82/€1 it was exchanged in the previous trading session.
In the same vein, the domestic currency improved its exchange rate against the Dollar yesterday by N5 in the black market to sell for N1,615/$1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,620/$1.
The pressure on the Nigerian currency eased on Monday as tariffs from the United States were paused, and recent signals showed that the government was complementing efforts to stabilise the market via adequate liquidity and supporting orderly market functioning.
A look at the cryptocurrency market showed a mixed outcome as President Donald Trump of the United States, after pausing sweeping global tariffs, made some concessions on electronics imports.
Further easing concerns was the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, confirming to hold off on retaliatory tariffs on US goods worth €21 billion until July 14 to allow space for negotiations.
The US Federal Reserve also signalled that a return of the original punitive Mr Trump tariffs would trigger the need for sizable “bad news” rate cuts.
Dogecoin (DOGE) depreciated yesterday by 3.5 per cent to sell at $0.1593, Solana (SOL) which lost 1.2 per cent to trade at $130.99, Litecoin (LTC) went down by 0.6 per cent to $77.74, and Cardano (ADA) dropped 0.3 per cent to close at $0.6405.
On the flip side, Bitcoin (BTC) grew by 1.2 per cent to $85,435.17, Ethereum (ETH) rose by 0.9 per cent to $1,636.35, Ripple (XRP) appreciated by 0.5 per cent to $2.14, and Binance Coin (BNB) went up by 0.08 per cent to $588.65, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 apiece.
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