Publications

Topics
Country
Region
PUBLISHEDFebruary 25 2020
AUTHOR(S)ESMAP
Funding the Sun: New Paradigms for Financing Off-Grid Solar Companies

This report elucidates the role of financial innovation in the off-grid solar sector and provides a roadmap for practitioners, financiers, and entrepreneurs navigating capital raises for companies active in the sector. It examines a full range of established and frontier financing options. It illustrates that some technology-enabled financial innovations, such as peer-to-peer business lending, are already playing an important role in the sector. It was prepared by the World Bank Group and the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, the University of Cambridge Judge Business School, with support from ESMAP.

Citation

Energy Sector Management Assistance Program. 2020. Funding the Sun: New Paradigms for Financing Off-Grid Solar Companies. World Bank, Washington, DC. © World Bank. License: CC BY 3.0 IGO. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/33331  

Users also downloaded
Auctions now dominate renewable power procurement, delivering low prices but often shifting risks and macroeconomic burdens to developing countries; the report (IRENA and ESMAP’s SRMI) proposes…
January 1 2026
 EXPLORE THE DATA: Multi-Tier Framework for Energy Access Access to energy is central to addressing critical development challenges. Energy deeply influences human development, serving as a…
December 31 2025
The study analyzes a 40-year, 142-country dataset using the national energy cost share to describe historical patterns, estimate cost share sensitivity to output and energy prices, and assess the…
December 22 2025
In FY2025, ESMAP expanded electricity to 21 million people, provided clean cooking to 1.1 million, and enabled 5,552 MW of renewables, bringing cumulative gains since FY2021 to 58 million with…
December 18 2025