ABUJA — United Capital Infrastructure Fund (UCIF) has announced the signing of a ₦5 billion (approximately $3.2 million) revolving, local currency debt facility with Husk, the world’s largest private-sector minigrid operator and a pioneer in distributed renewable energy. The revolving facility is the first Naira-denominated debt instrument of its kind and marks a significant step forward in accelerating Nigeria’s efforts to scale the community solar minigrid industry.
Announced on the sidelines of the Africa Climate Summit (ACS) in Addis Ababa, the facility was jointly developed by the two institutions to address a market gap, affecting the delivery and scaling of solar minigrids. Husk is the first minigrid developer in Nigeria to access this novel local currency facility from UCIF. For UCIF, this transaction reflects its broader mandate to channel long-term local currency financing into projects that expand clean energy access and accelerate sustainable development across Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa.
The revolving loan has a tenure of 10 years, during which Husk expects to redeploy the capital twice. Initial deployments will be used to build out Husk’s standalone minigrid pipeline in Nigeria, with expansion plans to include interconnected minigrids (IMGs) and commercial and industrial (C&I) solar projects.
Speaking on this landmark transaction, Uchenna Mkparu, Chief Investment Officer and Fund Manager of the United Capital Infrastructure Fund, said: “UCIF is excited to announce its maiden investment in the Renewable Energy Sector. This transaction underscores our commitment to advancing Nigeria’s renewable energy sector and expanding access to clean, reliable power. By providing affordable, long-term local currency debt to a market leader like Husk, UCIF is creating impact by enabling scalable, sustainable energy access for households, SMEs, smallholder farmers, and underserved communities across Nigeria. It is our goal to replicate this novel facility structure to deliver up to 100MW of clean power by 2030.”
From the developer’s perspective, Husk CEO & Co-Founder Manoj Sinha highlighted the broader industry significance, noting:
“Access to affordable, long-term, Naira-denominated capital has long been a critical bottleneck to scaling private-sector minigrids in Nigeria. This facility marks a new era for the industry and provides strong momentum for Husk’s Africa Sunshot initiative, under which we aim to build, own, and operate 1,000 minigrids in Nigeria.”
