What We Do

We develop, acquire, and finance microgrid projects that serve communities in Sub-Saharan Africa who are unlikely to have grid-connected power in the near future.  We demonstrate that distributed renewable energy can be deployed today using private sources of capital.

Why We Do It

2 out of 3 Sub-Saharan Africans – 600,000,000 people – lack access to electricity.

Access to reliable energy services is universally recognized as central to the biggest development challenges – income, environment, health, and education – facing the world’s least developed nations. Because of this, the international community adopted Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG 7), making a commitment to ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services by 2030.

But the “business as usual” approach to electrification – large grid projects driven by governments and aid agencies – won’t achieve this goal. In fact, the numbers of the un-electrified in Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to increase by 2030 unless major changes to the traditional approach to achieving universal energy access are made.

To achieve SDG 7, a clean energy revolution from renewable, decentralized microgrids is necessary.

Why Now

Because of radical cost reductions in photovoltaic solar and energy storage technologies, energy can now be delivered by solar microgrids more cost effectively than centralized power to hundreds of millions living in remote areas. Mainstream approaches that prioritize slow-to-build, unreliable centralized grids instead of deploying distributed renewable energy generation result in countless children losing educational opportunities, hundreds of thousands of businesses operating unproductively, and health clinics serving millions inadequately. We know that decentralized microgrids are the most expedient and effective means to deliver energy access to hundreds of millions of the un-electrified. We founded Millennium Microgrid to prove this – because we know they have waited long enough. It’s time for a clean energy revolution.

How We Do It

Focus on customer benefits, not kilowatt hours

As an energy service provider, we don’t simply focus on providing power to our customers and charging them for how much they use. Instead, we offer service packages that include a choice of energy-efficient lighting and appliances, maximizing value delivered and minimizing cost.

By moving from kerosene or other fuels to renewable energy services, customers see the immediate benefit of paying less for more energy services. Our value proposition is clear because our customers are choosing between microgrid-power and no power. When building in areas where grid connection is plausible, we preserve the option to grid-connect and choose the lowest cost option if and when the centralized grid is extended.

Careful site selection

We serve communities currently ignored by centralized utility planners and providers of development capital.

We choose sites where microgrids are the most competitive option, based on distance from the central grid and potential load size.  Optimal site selection is essential for delivering affordable, financially sustainable energy services without the need for subsidies.

Proven partners

We work with experienced contractors, reputable suppliers of equipment, proven hardware and software systems developers, and suppliers of a growing selection of energy-efficient lighting and appliances to deliver high quality, affordable energy services to our customers.

Aggregation

Most individual microgrids are too small to attract the necessary private sector investment. By aggregating several microgrids into one project, we achieve economies of scale and optimize investor opportunities.

Lowering the cost of capital – Development Finance Ninjas

There are many challenges to making investments in the world’s poorest nations. Overseas development assistance agencies, multilateral development banks, and development finance institutions (DFIs) bring essential expertise and resources to facilitate investment in these nations. But DFIs need to satisfy multiple constituencies and require large transaction costs, even on small transactions. This is one reason why they have failed to act on the opportunity presented by distributed generation and distribution.

The relationships that DFIs have with host nations are essential to reduce project risk and lower capital costs. But their lumbering size, long transaction cycles, and complicated procedures intended to minimize environmental and social costs for billion-dollar projects act as a barrier to investment. We are Development Finance Ninjas (DFNs) – a small, nimble, and creative team sized appropriately for microgrids. We execute transactions faster and with much lower cost than the DFIs can, while also working closely with them to leverage their strengths.