responsAbility Renewable Energy Holding (rAREH) was founded in 2013 with an ambitious mandate to develop, construct andown small to medium-sized renewable energy plants of up to 50MW capacity in sub-Sahara Africa. The company received initial backing from Swiss impact asset manager responsAbility Investments AG, alongside investments from partners KfW, Norfund and NDF. Operating from its base in Nairobi, the company has a mandate to create a positive impact from its activities in markets across sub-Saharan Africa.
In 2021 rAREH merged with the REH Group, based in Cape Town. The original strategy of the business was to become an independent power producer by 2026. The significant progress in the fulfillment of the company’s mission has enabled this goal to be achieved five years early. As of the 1st October 2021 Serengeti Energy has become independent of responsAbility and is now well positioned to continue its growth path.
Serengeti Energy has five operating hydro-electric power plants in South Africa and Uganda, with a further plant in construction in Uganda. It also has an active interest in a hydro plant in Rwanda which it jointly owns with others. Two new solar PV plants are currently in construction in Malawi and Sierra Leone. Once the new projects are completed Serengeti Energy will have operations in five countries with a total capacity of 75MW. The company also has an active development pipeline of projects totaling well over 300MW in its existing markets and four new markets. It is further exploring possibilities to develop and build new hydro, solar and wind projects in other markets across sub-Saharan Africa.
Commenting on the creation of Serengeti Energy, CEO Chris Bale said; “we are immensely grateful for the strong and consistent support that has been provided by Rochus Mommartz, the responsAbility CEO and his team. Without them, we would not have the unique opportunity to grow Serengeti Energy as a long-term business that can address the need for cost-effective clean electricity supplies in African markets.”
