Qotto, a distributor of stand-alone solar kits in Benin and Burkina Faso, has raised funding of $8 million to support its expansion in West Africa. The funding was raised in a Series A equity-debt round which was arranged by the Mauritius-based financial group IBL Together.
Investors like the Off-Grid Energy Access fund (FEI-OGEF), the Catholic Organisation for Relief and Development (CORDAID), and other existing investors of Quotto participated in this fundraising round. FEI-OGEF previously provided funding of $2 million to Qotto in 2021.
Qotto, the company based in Hauts-de-Seine, France, plans to use the $8 million financing raised to enter the energy market in Cote d’Ivoire, the country where the majority of the rural communities still do not have access to electricity. The funding will also be utilized by the company to grow its existing business in Benin and Burkina Faso.
Jean-Baptiste Lenoir, Co-Founder and President of Qotto, said the existing Qotto customers in Benin and Burkina Faso had expressed a need and desire to see the company enter the Ivorian market and Qotto is well-prepared for the new market entry. Qotto anticipates a great opportunity for essential services and large solar home systems offerings to more customers.
According to Lenoir, Qotto’s expansion would happen alongside IBL to strengthen its position in other regions of Africa and deliver more renewable energy solutions. IBL Together is also drawing its road in East Africa as well. Qotto’s planned financial services include micro-insurance, micro-credit & micro-savings products. These services were designed in collaboration with SUNU, a West African-based insurer.
Founded in 2016, Qotto is consistently providing solar energy solutions in West Africa with more than 11,000 active customers by the end of 2022. It has grown its revenue by 50% year on year. The company plans to double its existing customer number by the end of this year following its growth plans which is one of the reasons for the recent funding.
