General
CrossBoundary to Invest $16m in Mini-Grids in Nigeria
By Dipo Olowookere
Africa’s first project financing facility for mini-grids, CrossBoundary Energy Access (CBEA), has announced its launch, with funding commitments from The Rockefeller Foundation and Ceniarth.
The company is planning to initially invest $16 million into mini-grids serving 170,000 people, providing first-time power to homes and businesses. The focus is on markets with supportive mini-grid regulatory frameworks, such as Tanzania, Nigeria, and Zambia.
CrossBoundary Energy Access has an innovative blended finance structure that demonstrates a pathway to unlocking more than $11 billion for mini-grids needed from investors to connect at least 100 million people.
Over 600 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa still lack access to electricity. CrossBoundary conservatively estimates that at least 100 million of these people can be most cost effectively served by mini-grids today, and that using private sector development and investment could accelerate the buildout of those grids.
However, so far, private sector mini-grids have not attracted the needed funding. Like all energy infrastructure projects, mini-grids require a significant upfront investment while delivering predictable returns over a 10–15 year period. To scale, the capital provided must be long-term, affordable and accept lower yield returns. Operating in an emerging asset class with smaller balance sheets, mini-grid companies have so far struggled to raise that kind of financing.
CrossBoundary Energy Access bridges the gap to commercial scale, allowing private capital to invest today by blending it with patient equity from impact-first investors such as Ceniarth and development-focused debt from institutions such as The Rockefeller Foundation. The facility also allows private investors to invest in the projects themselves, similar to how most of the world’s 1,000 gigawatts of wind and solar projects have been financed.
Private sector capital and private sector mini-grids have an essential role to play in achieving Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7): Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. CrossBoundary Energy Access is seeking additional equity investment to expand this blended finance vehicle that provides both social and financial returns.
Shell Foundation and UK aid, through the Transforming Energy Access programme, provided support to design and launch CrossBoundary Energy Access.
CrossBoundary was advised by Norton Rose Fulbright, and Rockefeller Foundation was advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
Gabriel Davies, Head of Energy Access at CrossBoundary, says, “Mini-grids are critical to achieving universal electrification in Africa at the least cost. We believe long-term project finance structures will allow mini-grids to scale. We’re building investment portfolios that will attract the long-term, infrastructure-type capital the sector needs from institutional investors.”
Ashvin Dayal, Managing Director, Power, The Rockefeller Foundation, says, “We’re proud and excited to be an early investor in the CBEA facility because it represents an ambitious, concrete effort to realize the comparative advantage mini grids have to serve over 100 million people in Africa. The opportunity cost of energy poverty is huge, both in terms of suppressed human wellbeing and lost economic development. We believe that CBEA brings a much-needed sense of urgency, and provides a platform for more effective public and private sector coordination that can transform the pace of last-mile electrification.”
Diane Isenberg, Director, Ceniarth, says, “We believe CrossBoundary Energy Access has developed a thoughtful, blended approach to the challenge of unlocking capital for the mini-grid sector. We hope that as more data emerges to support the economics of the model, additional capital will flow into the sector at terms that allow us to gain increased leverage on our subordinate investment.”
Sam Parker, Director, Shell Foundation, says, “Shell Foundation has been a strong supporter of mini-grids for almost a decade. We believe the sector is now ready for the larger scale infrastructure finance that will enable it to scale. We are supporting CrossBoundary Energy Access because we believe that its aggregation approach will catalyze the hundreds of millions of dollars of private capital that is needed, alongside public finance, to grow the sector.”
Matt Tilleard, Co-managing Partner, CrossBoundary, says, “This first close for CrossBoundary Energy Access is a first step towards unlocking the private and public capital needed to scale the mini-grid sector. At CrossBoundary we believe that distributed renewables will be crucial to powering African homes, businesses, and industries. Our role is to mobilize the financing to make it happen.” Sebastian Deschler, General Counsel, CrossBoundary, says, “This facility is a template that can benefit the whole sector. CrossBoundary Energy Access will not invest in individual developers. Instead, it will acquire portfolios of mini-grid assets using low-cost, long-term project finance structures. This provides the sector with a repeatable model for accessing the project finance market that is needed for mini-grids to scale.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Ministry of Finance has directed all shipping companies and airlines operating in Nigeria to submit their manifests through the Single Window Project (SWP) as part of efforts to strengthen cargo tracking and transparency.
The submission of shipping manifests before the change of policy was handled exclusively by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for onward cargo processing and port clearance.
However, following a memo from late last year signed by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, all shipping firms and airlines were directed to integrate with the National Single Window platform to ensure seamless Manifests submission.
“I would like to bring to your attention that His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu inaugurated the National Single Window (NSW) Project on the 16th of April 2024.
The NSW Project aims to streamline and automate import and export processes at Nigeria’s entry & exit ports, with the dual goals of enhancing trade facilitation and increasing government revenue.
“By integrating the operations of multiple government agencies involved in trade processes on one platform, the NSW platform will ensure faster clearance of goods and services, improve operational efficiencies at the imports and significantly reduce bureaucratic bottlenecks.
“Key components of the Single Window as defined by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and World Customs Organisation (WCO) include: (a) a single-entry point i.e. traders, shipping lines, airlines and other stakeholders should submit all required import and export documentation through a single-entry point on a centralized digital platform, and (b) single submission i.e. all documentation should only be submitted once and data only entered once.
“As a result, the NSW Platform will be the single-entry point of submission for all Sea and Air Manifests. Therefore, all shipping lines and airlines are therefore directed to integrate with the NSW Platform to ensure seamless Manifests submission,” parts of the memo read.
The Comptroller-General of the NCS, the chairman of the Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS), the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) were copied in the memo.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The petition written against the immediate past chief executive of the Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Mr Farouk Ahmed, which was withdrawn from the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), has now been taken to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The letter was written by the chairman of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Mr Aliko Dangote. It contained allegations of allegations of abuse of office and corrupt enrichment against Mr Ahmed.
The petition led to the resignation of the former NMDPRA chief from office last month.
It was gathered that Mr Dangote, through his legal representative, filed a formal corruption petition against him at the headquarters of the EFCC, with specific plea of prosecuting Mr Ahmed if found culpable.
The businessman said the withdrawal of the petition from the ICPC was a strategic move aimed at accelerating the prosecution process.
In the petition signed by his lead counsel Mr O.J. Onoja (SAN), Mr Dangote noted that, “We make bold to state that the commission is strategically positioned along with sister agencies to prosecute financial crimes and corruption related offences, and upon establishing a prima facie case, the courts do not hesitate to punish offenders. See Lawan v. F.R.N (2024) 12 NWLR (Pt. 1953) 501 and Shema v. F.R.N. (2018) 9 NWLR (Pt.1624)337.”
He further urged the anti-money laundering agency, under the leadership of Mr Olanipekun Olukoyede, “…to investigate the complaint of Abuse of Office and Corruption against Engr. Farouk Ahmed and to accordingly prosecute him if found wanting.”
“The commission’s firm resolve in handling this matter with dispatch is not only imperative and expedient but will also serve as a deterrent to other public officers out there with such corrupt proneness and tendencies,” he added.
Recall that on December 14, 2025, Mr Dangote raised concerns about Mr. Ahmed’s financial dealings, alleging that the former regulator is living far beyond his legitimate means.
According to him, four of Mr Ahmed’s children attended elite secondary schools in Switzerland, incurring costs running into several millions of dollars—an expenditure that raises questions about potential conflicts of interest and the integrity of regulatory oversight in the downstream petroleum industry.
Mr Dangote listed the schools attended by Mr. Ahmed’s children: Faisal Farouk (Montreux School), Farouk Jr. (Aiglon College), Ashraf Farouk (Institut Le Rosey), and Farhana Farouk (La Garenne International School), noting that each child spent six years in these institutions. He estimated annual tuition, travel, and upkeep per child at $200,000, totaling approximately $5 million for their secondary education.
Additionally, he alleged that Mr Ahmed spent another $2 million on tertiary education for the four children, including $210,000 for Faisal’s 2025 Harvard MBA program.
“Nigerians deserve to know the source of these funds, especially when many parents in Mr Ahmed’s home state of Sokoto struggle to pay as little as N10,000 in school fees,” Mr Dangote stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigerian author, Ms Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and her husband, Dr Ivara Esege, have lost one of their twin sons, Nkanu Nnamdi.
According to a statement issued on Thursday by Ms Omawumi Ogbe, on behalf of the family, the 21-month-old baby passed away on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, after a brief illness.
The statement said the family is devastated by the loss, and requested that their privacy be respected during this difficult time.
“We’re deeply saddened to confirm the passing of one of Ms Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Dr Ivara Esege’s twin boys, Nkanu Nnamdi, who passed on Wednesday, 7th of January 2026, after a brief illness. He was 21 months old.
“The family is devastated by this profound loss, and we request that their privacy be respected during this incredibly difficult time.
“We ask for your grace and prayers as they mourn in private.
“No further statements will be made, and we thank the public and the media for respecting their need for seclusion during this period of immense grief,” the statement read.
Ms Adichie is known for works including Half of a Yellow Sun, Americanah and her 2012 Ted Talk and essay We Should All Be Feminists, which was sampled by Beyoncé on her 2013 song Flawless.
The 48 year old writer had her first child, a daughter, in 2016. In 2024, her twin boys were born using a surrogate.
In 2020, her 2006 novel Half of a Yellow Sun was voted the best book to have won the Women’s Prize for Fiction in its 25-year history.
Her latest book, Dream Count, was published in 2025.
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