March 29, 2024

Eight clean-energy SMEs win $10,000 each at All On/NCIC annual incubation program 

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Oredola Adeola

Eight renewable energy market SMEs have won $10,000 grant funding awarded each having emerged as the winners of the 2022 edition of the All On Hub and Nigeria Climate Innovation Centre (NCIC) annual incubation program for early-stage renewable energy entrepreneurs.

This was revealed in a statement obtained by EnergyDay on the sideline of the Demo Day event hosted by the All On Hub, in, Lagos, on Thursday.

During the Demo Day event, the start-ups pitched their business plans before varied panel of judges selected by the host, for a chance to win $10,000 grant award funding.

The shortlisted winners are Retile, Let It Cold, Energy Assured, Nutrideen Agriculture Concepts, Danwawo Group, Swift Tranzact, Solaris Greentech Hub and Powerbox Energy Systems.

EnergyDay gathered that some of the clean energy ideas presented at the 2022 pitching event include solar-powered cooling systems, cold storage solutions, solar home systems (SHS), solar generators, energy efficiency technologies and biogas production.

According to the statement of All On, “The incubation program, which started training new cohorts in May 2022, aims to contribute to the reduction of Nigeria’s energy-access gap by building a pipeline of early-stage renewable energy enterprises with the potential to scale.

“This year, the program received 290 applications from which 18 ventures were shortlisted and completed the 6-month incubation program conducted by the NCIC.

“The Demo Day event marks the completion of the Embryo Incubation program (EIP).

Caroline Eboumbou, All On CEO, while commending the participants for their dedication to supporting the clean energy transition with their bold ideas, noted that the shared vision of All On and NCIC has been to groom early-stage clean energy entrepreneurs.

She added that the vision is further meant to provide the SMEs with the key ingredients to enable their dreams of impacting unserved communities a reality”.

All On CEO charged the entrepreneurs not to relent and reaffirmed All On’s commitment to their continued development in the future.

Mr. Bankole Oloruntoba, CEO of NCIC reiterated the organization’s commitment to the growth of renewable energy start-ups in Nigeria, noting that over 50 ideation-stage businesses have gone through the program.

He said, “All On for has over the last three years, provided funding and capacity-building support to the renewable energy start-ups.

Bankole however charged the entrepreneurs to remain focused and maximize the resources available to them through the NCIC network to accelerate the growth of their businesses, drawing inspiration from notable alumni from the previous cohorts.

Notably, out of the eight (8) winning pitches, four (4) were delivered by women founders/CEOs, a positive strides being made by women entrepreneurs in the sector.

The women-led ventures are, Let It Cold, Energy Assured, Danwawo and Solaris.

Zainab Abdulwaheed, co-founder of Let It Cold, who is also one of the female recipients of the $10,000 grant, thanked All On and NCIC for the opportunity.

“My business has benefited from my participation in the incubation program over the last six months, and we have improved our understanding of how a business operates,” she added.

According to judge Damilola Asaleye, Vice President, Renewable Energy Association of Nigeria (REAN), “the innovative ideas during this year’s incubation program were outstanding, original, and demonstrated sustainability.

“The quality of the pitches was top-notch. They all demonstrated that Africa and Nigeria can solve energy poverty with locally developed solutions. NCIC and All On are truly unlocking potential.”

Sele Inegbedion, All On Hub manager, said, “The All On Hub has deployed $240,000 to this program series in grant awards, and it has proven to be a worthwhile commitment.

“The progress made by alumni entrepreneurs is a testament to the value of this program, and the quality of pitch presentations at today’s event gives strong promise for the future of energy access in Nigeria,” he added.

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