SPEAKER_04: 0:08

Hello and welcome to the Minigrid Moment, powering communities across Africa, the podcast where we spotlight Minigrid companies at the forefront of transforming energy access across the continent. I am your host, Abraham Mudassi. Today we travel to Nigeria to tell the story of a company inspired by a pressing need and powered by vision. It's Solar Energy Limited. It began in 2017 with one simple but urgent question What if unribal electricity didn't have to define people's lives? For millions of Nigerians, life without reliable power is more than an inconvenience. It's a constant barrier. Businesses tall, students struggle, communities doom at sunset. In the middle of this, one young engineer imagines something different. From the start, Stisola recognized that the true impact wasn't in access to electricity itself, but in how the access could transform lives. Light bulbs and phone charging are only the first steps. The real story begins when reliable power allows a welder to keep his shop open late, a farmer to regate during the dry season, a clinic to preserve vaccines, or children to study after dark. That's when electricity shifts from being a service to becoming a catalyst, fueling productivity, unlocking opportunity, and setting communities on a path toward lasting growth and resilience.

SPEAKER_09: 1:39

What is the story behind C Solar? Well, it's actually an interesting one. In the year 2017, working as a consultant, I was involved in a couple of projects that where we needed to study the energy demand and supply gap in a couple of distribution companies. And what we discovered was that while there was huge demand, which we all are very aware of, the supply was very constrained. And the only way to meet supply was for us to do things differently. And doing things differently meant that rather than rely on you know plans to build large generation plans, um, large transmission, you know, infrastructure, we needed to think differently. We needed to be able to look for solutions that were quick to deploy, better for the environment, and solar just ticked the box. And that was when C solar was born, because that was when it became clear that that if we are going to improve energy access in the country, reduce carbon emissions, lead in the energy transition, we needed to move from the drawing board into the field, and that was when inspiration for C Solar for the founders came to bear. Why did C Solar rebrand in the year 2022? By the year 2022, we had just closed our pre-seed funding round and we were building our pilot mini-grid. And what we realized was that up until that moment, the type of customers that we were providing services for were mostly those that valued power for productive use. And that made it clear to us that if we were going to, in everything we do, do it in a classic, sustainable, and innovative manner, then these are the types of customers that we need to ensure provide our services for. Because we realize that customers who wanted to use power for productive use would value the sort of products we used, sort of services we provided, and we will be aligned with us, and that encouraged us to rebrand where we focus on two colors, black and green, to show focus, to show life, productivity, innovation, sustainability, and this has been what has helped our brand over the years.

SPEAKER_04: 4:43

Building mini-grids isn't just a technical challenge, it's a financial marathon, requiring patience, long-term investment, and the resilience to navigate complex funding landscapes. In a sector where patient capital is scarce, Cisola has had to be both bold and resourceful. They have shown investors that mini-grids are in charity. They are viable, sustainable businesses that change lives.

SPEAKER_02: 5:09

Our journey into the minigrids we took off in 2021 when we joined the USAID all-on of the challenge. We went in with the hope of testing our ideas, and by the end of the challenge, we actually emerged as one of the winners. That win came with a blended finance package of 100,000 USD, which we used to develop and construct a 27 kilowatt peak solar mini-grid in Abari Bara to serve 217 customers. That project was more than just infrastructure, it became our proof of concept showing that we could deliver and that communities were ready to embrace clean power. Many grids are long-term infrastructure projects, and that means they require patient financing, which is one of the toughest things to secure. Access to the right kind of capital has always been one of our biggest hurdles. Those challenges also push us to be more flexible, to keep learning, and to innovate in how we approach projects. Partnership with the local community has been critical. Using smart technology has helped us to work around operational bottlenecks and staying engaged with the founders and active policymakers have helped us to keep the conversations and to keep the relationships and the influence needed to keep moving. So, yes, it's been challenging, but also been deeply rewarding. Every obstacle has taught us something new. And today, we're not just building many grids, we're building resilience, partnerships, and a model that can power communities for the long term.

SPEAKER_00: 8:09

Follow on implemented regular monitoring and audits, provided guidance on best practices, and required C Solar to submit detailed reports throughout the project. This approach ensured that the project was executed safely and met all necessary requirements.

SPEAKER_04: 8:23

What sets C Sola apart is not just how they build, but how they listen. Before every project, they sit down with communities, not to sell, but to understand. In one of their pilot community projects, C Sola didn't just switch on the lights.

SPEAKER_02: 8:53

So expanding household consumption only gets used so far. The lights, the fans, maybe a TV, right? So instead we shifted our focus to catalyzing productive customers. That's how C solar Energy Access Ecosystem was born. We integrated clean energy with tools that power livelihood. Things like the cast server and rice meals for farmers, packaging machines for retailers, and even electric tricycles with charging and battery swapping stations. The impact has been incredible. Farmers process harvest faster and even earn more. The traders keep goods fresh and longer. Drivers save money with e-mobility, and because people are now using power to run business, not just their homes, demand for electricity keeps growing. In short, we say energy becomes more than light. It becomes income, mobility, resilience, and opportunity. That's what makes our ecosystem trying.

SPEAKER_04: 9:59

These acts of corporate responsibility, from schools to health centers, became templates for other projects. Suddenly, access to electricity didn't just brighten homes through lighting. It powered possibilities and expanded futures.

SPEAKER_08: 10:13

My name is uh Mr. Yung Young. I'm from Magari Bara, Ambayung. Just a local government area across the state. I am standing on behalf of uh Ghost Building International Summer School in Nagari Bara. And I want to tell the world about the impact that the computer center that the C Solar Company have situated in my community, the impact it has created in our school. I think before now, our students have no knowledge about computers. But since the inception of this computer center, they have begun to know so many things about computers. Those who don't know the keyboards and other necessary things that we have in computers, they have known them now. And I think that this computer center has created a lot of uh things that are so beneficial and so meaningful to our students. And I want to also comment on the area of the teachers. The teachers have also been using the computer center in assessing the area of their studies so as to see how far they have gone in the academic performance of the students. So I want to say that the computer center we have here in our community, the Cisola company have installed, it has done a lot in our community, especially in our students.

SPEAKER_04: 11:37

Building and operating mini-grids in rural areas is never straightforward. Developers like Cisola are to contend with weak infrastructure that makes transporting equipment costly and slow, poor roads that delay installation and maintenance, and persistent financing bottlenecks that make scaling difficult. But instead of being deterred, Cisola adapted, finding innovative ways to mobilize resources, partner with communities, and designed business models that could withstand these hurdles while still delivering reliable power to underserved areas. To overcome these challenges, Cisola adopted an ecosystem model that goes beyond simply supplying electricity. Instead of viewing power as the end goal, the pair energy access to productive use equipment and services, such as milling machines, coal storage, water pumps, and digital tools that help households and businesses put electricity to work. This approach not only stimulates local enterprise and income generation, but also ensures steady growth in demand for power, creating a virtuous cycle where the mini-grid becomes both commercially viable and socially transformative. In doing so, the solar open up new revenue streams while empowering communities to thrive.

SPEAKER_10: 13:00

We discovered early on that for minigrids to succeed, the power has to be used productively. Expanding outside consumption only gets useful for lights, fans, maybe a TV in some cases. So instead, we shifted our focus to catalyzing productive customers. And that as the Solar Energy Access ecosystem was formed. We integrate clean energy with tools that powers livelihoods, things like cassava and rice meals for farmers, packaging machines for retailers and even electric tricycles with charging and battery swapping stations. The impact has been incredible. Farmers process harvest faster and earn more. Traders are able to keep their goods fresh for a longer period. Drivers save more money with immobility. And because people are using power to run businesses, not just homes, not just basic electronics in their houses, demand for electricity keeps growing. In short, energy becomes more than light, it becomes income, it becomes mobility, resilience, and opportunity. And that's what makes our ecosystem try.

SPEAKER_07: 14:11

My name is Honorable Ezekiel FBI Oholo. I come from Cosmo State, just a local government. What made me to be saying this is because of what I'm appreciating the C Sola Company. Because number one, what they did for us, I so much like it. Like me. If I want to go and buy food to put in my genetic, it cannot take me one number to finish. That's the condition of it. No, that is the one the whole of a bango. The whole of a bango, the whole of everyone is in the same. The whole of um DRC appreciating Cisola because of the happiness. Like example now, I'm making use of uh PU Gandalf uh Cassava engine on that Cisola. I may recharge money. Like example now. If I recharge one thousand, I'm a losing like five days. If I recharge one thousand, it may take me more than a week. It may take me more than a week. That's the reason why I so much appreciate C Sula company because they're making us to be delighted at any time. Delighted at any time. Now, if we go into fuel issues concerning fuel and the network or engine, it may not take us like that. So, right now, what I'm saying is that C Sola is the most specific company that even heaven and the earth knows that is stepping off. So now I myself say that I'm using C Solar running engine of Cassava. Is that it? My wife is in a left way. She's a tailoring, she's also making use of sewing machine without the C solar, we cannot work. But now the C solar makes us to be happy. My wife also has an electric ion, which is also under the C solar light. Even as I'm talking, I'm also making a use of a blender. You know, blender communicate with light. The blender cannot work.

SPEAKER_05: 16:43

Okay, my name is Um Sinon Metsu. Um, I'm a small medium business owner in a Balabara community. I want to say ideally that um the C Solar um mini grid light really impacted my business and improved um the operating cost. The truth is that before now, um, for operating cost, I I used to spend like running a diesel, running a fuel in a generator. In most cases, to run a diesel 6 p.m. to most cases um 12 a.m. spend the most of it. Most cases 10,000 and above. Now it is a laden that I spend less than that. Um now for the charge, me for the charge in my meter, my paper meter, I'll charge less than sometimes two thousand. Those the in before now I I I closed my business sometimes nine p.m. That's uh trying to avoid extra costs on a catalog. Um the business beyond that. I think um is is it's a benefit, and so that's where the business has benefited me. And beyond that, beyond that, the energy supply has also helped us to boost my business. See attractive, say you have attract a lot of patronage. Okay, also only through the availability of this my this expansion in my business. Um I can have more of our workers. It means that um that also has employment opportunity for other persons, as I employed persons, um, you see that um have I've employed people, and so and they are gladly working in with me. So generally, the business also created employment opportunity beyond the fact that there's expansion and improvement, they also create employment opportunities for that for that people to solar energy line.

SPEAKER_04: 18:29

The lesson is clear. Minigrids are not just about containers, wires, panels, and the technical act of supplying electricity. They are powerful engines of community transformation. By bringing reliable energy to underserved areas, mini-grids spark new economic activity, create jobs, and empower local entrepreneurs to grow their businesses. They make it possible for schools to extend learning hours, health centers to operate life-saving equipment, and households to access modern conveniences. In short, minigrids do more than providing power. They unlock opportunities, build resilience, and lay the foundation for inclusive and sustainable growth.

SPEAKER_03: 19:11

My name is Gideon Ukam, and I'm the community largest and specialist at Cisola. I'm also an indigenous Abaribara. I first met Cisola in 2021 when they came to my community with the vision of providing reliable power. At that time, I was still a university student studying electrical engineering, and I saw it as an opportunity to learn about renewable energy while also helping my community understand the positive impact the project could bring. In 2022, shortly after graduating, I officially joined C Solar. Over time, I grew into my current role as community license specialist, where I engage with communities every day, listen to their needs, and make sure the project we deliver truly connected with the people they are meant to serve. Our pilo mini grid in Abaraba really shows what that means in practice. It wasn't just about switching on the light. Cisola also introduced cassava mini machines that made farming more profitable for local farmers. They could process their harvest faster, save time, and earn more income. We also worked with the local school to set up a computer center. For the very first time, the children who had never seen a computer were able to sit in front of a computer and began learning digital skills. For me, being from Ambariba, I've seen firsthand how access to energy can transform lives. It's also not just about electricity, its livelihoods, its education, its opportunity. And that's why I'm proud to do what I do at Cisola.

SPEAKER_04: 21:05

Behind the scenes, technology is the acquired force, making everything work seamlessly. At Cisola, the grids aren't just built and left behind. They are designed to adapt. By using a module approach, each mini-grid can expand step by step, growing in capacity as households, businesses, and entire communities demand more power. Smart metering ensures every unit of electricity is tracked fairly, giving customers transparency while helping the company manage usage patterns efficiently. At the same time, remote monitoring systems allow technicians to detect and fix problems before they escalate, reducing downtime, cutting operational costs, and ensuring communities have reliable, affordable energy when they need it most.

SPEAKER_01: 21:53

Remote monitoring works by continuously sending real-time data like voltage, currents, power factor, and load patterns from the meter back to the utility or system operators. So, how does it help with faults? I'll mention a few. So it helps in early detection of abnormalities. Smart meters can flag unusual conditions such as sudden voltage drop, surges, reverse power flow, or frequent outages. These are often early signs of equipment faults, overloading, or tempering. So by spotting them early, the utility can take action before they turn into a major problem. It also helps in fast fault localization. So when remote monitoring, the utility doesn't need to wait for consumers' complaints or send technicians out blindly. The system pinpoints where the fault occurs down to a feeder, transformer, or even an individual customer's connection, saving time and resources. It also helps in preventive maintenance. So by analyzing trends in the data, utility can see when equipment is under stress. For example, consistently high load on a transformer or irregular voltage swings might signal that the asset needs servicing. Addressing it early prevents unplanned failures. It also helps in reduced downtime because the utility can identify and sometimes even resolve issues remotely. Consumers experience fewer and shorter outages. In some cases, supply can be rerouted automatically once repairs are made. And finally, it's improved great time reliability and safety. Remote monitoring can help utility ensure that the network is running within safe limits. Detecting faults early reduces risk like equipment damage, fire hazard or blackouts.

SPEAKER_04: 24:06

Cisola's journey began with a clear mission to bring electricity to communities that had long been underserved. Over time, that mission evolved, moving beyond simply providing electricity to enabling productivity, powering small businesses, and supporting livelihoods. Today, Cisola stands at a defining moment, proven in delivering reliable energy and unlocking economic opportunity. The natural question now is where does this journey go next? From a single idea in 2017 to a company now powering livelihoods and local economies, the solar proves that in underserved communities, innovation shines brightest. And with every village it lights up, Cisola isn't just delivering electricity, it's powering productivity and igniting the future.

SPEAKER_06: 24:57

I am Ekweoung from our community under Abayong Award, Crossover State of Nigeria. I am making clear to everybody that this solar that I come to in this community has made us to be happy, make enjoyable as much as it is. You know, for all that time we have been suffering because of no light, but now because of this light, we have been stealing from morning to evening, from evening to daybreak. Enjoyment continues because of the light. And again, this light has made us you know to have a cassava milling engine that you cannot buy for. You only plug it by the light and you grind your cassava. As then even rice means you plug your right your engine with the light. When you plug it, it will you use it and then mill your own rice as you want it. Nothing that the light could not help us. The light, the light makes us you know to make our life easier than before. So I am saying everybody has to appreciate insular because they make life easier to all everybody in this community. Thank you. In those days, when we add 20 liters of wheat in a engine so that we can use the light for either reading or even uh preserving our perishable goods at the fridge. But today that we are having this dollar, only 500 can last you up to one month, which makes our life easier. So, like what I'm saying, this solar is very, very important to every community.

SPEAKER_04: 26:37

Tisola story is one of resilience, community empowerment, and vision. What began is the founder's dream to bring reliable electricity to underserved communities has grown into a company proving that minigrids do far more than lighting homes. Through their work, solar stand vision into reality, powering businesses, fueling livelihoods, and showing that access to electricity is access to possibility. That's it from us on the Minigrid moment. Share this story, follow CSOLA on social media and visit Cisola.com to see their impact in action. This podcast has been made possible with support from Inventors and the World Bank's Energy Sector Management Assistance Program, ETMA. Their commitment to advancing sustainable energy access continues to empower us to respect this one. Showcasing how innovation and economic driven solutions are transforming lives across Africa. Till next time, keep returning the light.