MOPO, an Africa-focused pay-per-use battery rental firm backed by UK clean energy giant Octopus Energy Group Ltd., has signed an agreement with the Federal Government of Nigeria to execute a $75 million expansion plan.
The partnership, facilitated alongside Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency (REA), will kick off with a pilot program this year before scaling up operations through 2030. The project aims to deliver clean, off-grid power to millions of unserved and underserved households and micro-enterprises across Nigeria.
Solving the Mini-Grid and Solar Home System Paradox
MOPO’s business model removes the main financial barrier to rural electrification: the requirement for low-income families to take on debt for home solar systems or rely on expensive, fixed mini-grids.
Rather than selling solar panels or constructing costly distribution grids, MOPO builds central solar-powered hubs managed by local agents. Customers rent pre-charged, proprietary batteries on a short-term basis (ranging from a few hours to a couple of days) to power lights, charge mobile devices, or run commercial equipment.
“We solve a lot of the problems that mini-grids and solar home systems struggle with,” said Luke Burras, MOPO’s Chief Operating Officer. “We rent batteries to customers for hours. We’re not asking them to buy an asset in the case of solar home systems, and we’re not asking investors to place a huge bet on their future usage as with mini-grids.”
Aligning with Continental Electrification Targets
MOPO’s expansion aligns with the broader Mission 300 initiative led by the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB). That multi-billion-dollar program seeks to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030, targeting sub-Saharan Africa’s deficit, where roughly 560 million people still lack reliable power.
The company’s rental volume has grown rapidly, rising from 150,000 battery rentals per month in 2023 to 1.6 million monthly rentals. Supported by debt facilities from British International Investment (BII) and funding from Norway’s Norfund, MOPO’s pay-per-use model provides an alternative to petrol generators, helping lower household energy costs while expanding clean energy access across Nigeria.
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