The Facility for Energy Inclusion (“FEI”), Finnfund, and the asset management company of ieng Group, Communication & Renewable Energy Infrastructure (“CREI”), signed US$ 20 million facilities to finance its Telecom Energy Service Company (“TESCO”) in South Sudan.

June 28, 2024 – FEI and CREI signed a US$ 15 million bridge facility to finance renewable energy assets in South Sudan. This financing will enable CREI to provide “energy as a service” to a telecom stakeholder in South Sudan by developing, building, operating, and maintaining energy assets. The Finnish development financier and impact investor, Finnfund, signed a US$ 5 million mezzanine loan to finance the project.

“The Facility for Energy Inclusion continues to play a leading role in the TESCO sector in Africa where the Funds has been able to leverage its experience to provide a tailored and pragmatic financial solution to deliver this landmark transaction in South Sudan. This is a testimony of FEI and Cygnum Capital’s ability to support investment across frontier markets”, said Carmen de Castro, Managing Director and FEI Fund Lead at Cygnum Capital.

“This investment is aligned with our goals for both digitalisation and climate action. We see that improving mobile connectivity supports economic growth, improved living standards and an inclusive society”, says Valtter Louhivuori, Head of the Nairobi office at Finnfund.

“We are thrilled to join forces with FEI and Finnfund in financing our TESCO project in South Sudan. This partnership aligns with our mission to lead the transition towards sustainable telecom and energy infrastructure across Africa and Asia; and achieve lasting positive impact. We are confident that our combined efforts will enable the telecom stakeholder to expand and contribute to the telecom sector development of South Sudan”, said Kadri El Hakim, CEO at CREI.

FEI is managed by Cygnum Capital and was advised by Trinity International (legal) and IBIS Environmental Social Consulting Europe (E&S) on this transaction.