Kenyan electric bus company BasiGo has raised $42 million in fresh funding to grow its business throughout East Africa.
With $17.5 million in debt and $24 million in equity, the funding will help the company reach its three-year target of delivering 1,000 electric buses.
Africa50 spearheaded the equity round, with participation from Mobility54, CFAO Kenya, Novastar Ventures, and other significant investors.
With this funding, BasiGo will be able to expand its electric bus services in Rwanda and Kenya. The company’s electric bus deployment in these nations will be aided by the debt facilities offered by British International Investment (BII) and the U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC).
While the $7.5 million from BII will help with the expansion into Rwanda, the $10 million debt from DFC will mainly support BasiGo’s operations in Kenya.
The CEO of BasiGo, Jit Bhattacharya, emphasized the company’s commitment to making Africa’s public transportation system cleaner and more sustainable.
The funding, he said, validates BasiGo’s business model and enables the company to concentrate on growing its operations and turning a profit.
Additionally, the investment strengthens BasiGo’s “Pay-As-You-Drive” program, a cutting-edge financing scheme that has increased public transportation operators’ access to electric buses.
Once more, the money will be utilized to launch new car models and expand BasiGo’s production capacity at its assembly plant in Kenya. BasiGo has started a pilot project with six of its electric buses operating in Kigali and the surrounding areas of Rwanda. The buses are already in use in Nairobi.
With more than 300 reservations from bus companies in Rwanda, BasiGo will be able to accommodate the growing demand in the nation thanks to the new capital.
British International Investment’s Seema Dhanani discussed how this investment will benefit the environment, especially by lowering pollution from public transportation.
