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Dear Valued Stakeholder,

Husk Power Systems Nigeria's Management Team

2022 is off to a fast start for Husk Power.

Prior to delving into the details, I want to thank the more than 200 of you who’ve subscribed to our quarterly updates.

In Q1, Husk secured the industry’s largest-ever local currency debt financing for minigrids, receiving INR 310 million ($4.2 million) to accelerate growth in India. The company also operationalized its first solar hybrid minigrids in Nigeria, quickly establishing itself as a leader in Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest market, which has the potential for 10,000 minigrids. On the global front, Husk became the first minigrid company to sign a UN Energy Compact, committing to build at least 5,000 sites and avoid CO2 emissions from nearly 700 million gallons of diesel by 2030.

In addition, Husk reported corporate results for 2021, showing a healthy 45% growth in revenue despite huge disruptions caused by the Covid pandemic. 

Husk continued to receive widespread recognition for its leadership: it was named Best Smart Grid Project of the Year by both the Asian Power Awards and the India Smart Grid Forum Innovation Awards. And I was honored to be named to the Global Power & Energy Elites. Husk was also featured as a speaker at numerous high-level events, and garnered a steady stream of positive media coverage in Africa and Asia. 

You’ll find much more detail below, and please reach out to me if you’re interested in learning more about Husk.

Best, 
Manoj Sinha, Co-Founder & CEO


MARKET FOCUS


Our CEO with the Governor of Nasarawa State and the Andoma of Doma at the commissioning of Husk's first six minigrids in Nigeria

Husk became the first company in Nigeria to commission and operationalize a batch of minigrids at one time. Under the Nigeria Electrification Project (implemented by the Rural Electrification Agency and funded by the World Bank and African Development Bank), Husk rolled out 6 minigrids in Nasarawa State, serving a mix of business and household customers as well as social institutions like health clinics.

Husk has plans to build 100 minigrids in Nigeria by the end of 2023 and 500 by 2026, which include both off-grid and grid-interconnected minigrids. Initial traction in our first half dozen communities has been strong, with capacity utilization already reaching 45% in the first months of operation (a level that took a couple of years to reach in India). The launch ceremony in the village of Rukubi was attended by government, finance, religious and development sector leaders, including the Governor of Nasarawa State. Husk’s leadership as the only minigrid developer active across both Africa and Asia will be featured in an upcoming World Bank report.


FINANCIAL OUTLOOK

Husk received INR 310 million ($4.2 million) from the India Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. (IREDA) to build 140 minigrids in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar states. This was the largest debt financing for a minigrid company in India to date, and also the largest ever local currency debt financing in the industry. Husk has been actively engaged with multiple DFIs and international lenders to raise project finance, and expects to close $18 million in debt in 2022. Husk has also started raising a Series D round of equity, which will be between $40 million and $50 million.  

Looking back, Husk also reported results for 2021. Husk is the only minigrid company to report annual results. Despite multiple lockdowns in India and supply chain disruptions in Africa, Husk achieved an average CAGR of 66% during the two pandemic-hit years of 2020 and 2021. Revenue growth in 2021 was 45%, driven by a 79% growth in electricity sales, a 155% expansion in energy-efficient appliance sales, and steady growth of Husk’s turnkey rural C&I solar installation business. Husk finished the year with 215 minigrids, registering a 40% growth in MSME customers to 6,100, plus more than 200 factories.  


INDUSTRY LEADERSHIP

Husk Power Systems CMO William Brent at the SDG7 Pavilion at COP26

At COP26, with the support of our partners the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), Swedfund, First Solar and Alluvial Agriculture, Husk put forward a set of ambitious 2030 goals: 5,000 minigrids, 1 million connections, half of which will be MSMEs, 11 million beneficiaries, 500MW of rural C&I, 5 million energy efficient appliances sold, and 7 megatonnes of CO2 avoided by displacing diesel generation. These 7 goals comprised the UN Energy Compact that Husk signed in Q1 2022. 

Husk executives also spoke at a number of high-level events, including the Powering Africa Summit, Africa Energy Forum, Africa Energy Indaba, IOREC, ECOWAS Sustainable Energy Forum, India Smart Grid Forum and the Microgrid Innovation Forum. 

As part of its goal of becoming compliant with the 2X Challenge, Husk, with the support of its investors FMO and Swedfund, is working towards greater gender balance within the company and creating new products and services that positively impact women and women entrepreneurs in Husk’s areas of operation. To signal its intentions, Husk became a signatory to the Gender & Energy Compact, a multi-stakeholder coalition promoting a just, inclusive and “gender-responsive” energy transition.


IN THE NEWS

Below are a few highlights of Husk media coverage in Q1: 


‹ Q3 Report - 2022