Impact investor Acumen announced that it has raised $250 million in blended capital through its “Hardest-to-Reach Initiative” (H2R), aimed at expanding clean energy access across sub-Saharan Africa.

Launched at the COP28 climate conference in 2023 with a $65 million anchor investment by the Green Climate Fund, H2R brings together public, private, and philanthropic capital to expand clean and affordable energy access to low-income communities living beyond the grid in sub-Saharan Africa.

According to Acumen, H2R aims to reach nearly 70 million people across underserved geographies in sub-Saharan Africa, including 50 million first-time energy users, across 17 countries, and expects to avoid 4 million tonnes of CO2 emissions.

The H2R initiative encompasses two complementary strategies, including Catalyze, which uses a tailored mix of equity, debt, and grants to provide catalytic capital, and Amplify, a debt fund designed to help companies deepen their reach within H2R markets and provide larger ticket sizes to scale-up delivery.

The new announcement includes the final close of Amplify at $180 million, with a new $7.8 million commitment from the Swiss Agency for Development, as well as $18 million in complementary grant capital to provide impact-based rewards to borrowers.

Jiwoo Choi, Chief of Strategic Initiatives and Head of the H2R Initiative at Acumen, said:

“Over the past two years, we brought together partners who aligned behind one goal: to unlock energy access to the most remote and vulnerable areas. Moving from an announced strategy to fully committed capital gives us the foundation to carry this work forward with clarity and purpose.”