The Altech Group, based in the DRC, has raised US$18 million in loans and grants to keep improving its market position and give more people access to energy across the country.
Altech was started in 2013; it has built a sales and distribution network with a national reach. It has 4,500 employees, sales agents, and more than 140 shops in 22 of the DRC’s 26 provinces. It has helped more than 1.7 million Congolese live better by selling more than 350,000 solar energy products.
With the US$18 million in growth capital announced, Altech could open more than 30 new stores in rural areas without competition and sell 180,000 solar products, giving 900,000 people access to clean, reliable energy.
Most debt financings came from the Energy Entrepreneurs Growth Fund (EEGF), Triple Jump, and Rabobank, each through its facilities. Altech has also gotten help from Social Investment Managers & Advisors (SIMA Funds), SIDI (Solidarity International for Development and Investment), Kiva, Whole Planet Foundation, and EquityBCDC.
Creating Hope in Conflict: A Humanitarian Grand Challenge and ANSER RDC gave the grants.
“Since our humble beginning in 2013 in our off-grid city of Baraka in South-Kivu province in the Eastern part of the DRC, we have faced the severe challenge of obtaining working capital financing in our efforts to connect off-grid households in the rural, peri-urban, and urban areas of our country,” said Altech co-founder Washikala Malango.
“The incredible support from Rabobank and EEGF, as well as our other lenders, is one of the main pillars for Altech to provide affordable clean energy to thousands of Congolese off-grid households to modern, clean, reliable, and affordable solar solutions while creating thousands of green jobs for Congolese youth.”
This investment aligns with the commitment to investing in innovative solutions that address critical global challenges. Altech will continue to make a real difference in people’s lives. Recent market shocks such as COVID-19 and the increases in food and energy prices are hitting the world’s poorest the hardest. Providing access to clean, affordable, and reliable energy is one improvement Altech is trying to make to people’s lives.
