How Genesis Energy sparked a quiet boom in clean power

In northern Nigeria, the hum of diesel generators that long defined everyday life at Katsina General Hospital has begun to fade. In its place, a quiet transformation is underway. A newly commissioned 250-kilowatt solar system with a 300-kilowatt-hour battery capacity now powers wards and operating rooms, reducing reliance on costly, polluting fuels while ensuring uninterrupted electricity for critical care.

The shift is emblematic of a broader trend sweeping across Africa: clean energy projects that are less flashy than billion-dollar mega dams or grand national grids, but far more immediate in their impact. At the centre of this movement stands Genesis Energy Group, a Lagos-based developer that is reimagining how power is delivered to the continent’s most underserved communities.

Founded in 2005, Genesis has spent two decades quietly building one of Africa’s most diverse portfolios of clean energy projects.

Its guiding mantra, “lighting up Africa one community at a time”, is proving more than just corporate rhetoric.

By working directly with state governments, hospitals, schools, and local industries, the company is making the case that access to affordable, reliable power is as much about health, education, and economic resilience as it is about kilowatt hours.

A growing crisis in energy access

Despite abundant natural resources, Africa’s power challenge remains stark. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), over 600 million people on the continent live without access to electricity, and nearly 1 billion still cook with traditional fuels like wood, charcoal, or coal. The consequences are profound: respiratory illnesses from indoor air pollution, millions of hours lost each year to fuel collection, and stagnant productivity in communities cut off from reliable power.

Nowhere are these challenges more acute than in Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy. The World Bank estimates that only 55% of Nigerians have access to electricity. Rural electrification rates are even bleaker, dropping to just 24%, compared to more than 80% in urban areas. Kerosene lamps, diesel generators, and firewood remain the default solutions, entrenching a cycle of high costs, pollution, and inequality.

The urgency is underscored by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG 7): ensuring universal access to affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy by 2030. Meeting that target requires bold action across the board—government reforms, international financing, and private-sector innovation. Increasingly, it is companies like Genesis Energy that are showing what that future can look like on the ground.

Genesis Energy’s state-level bet

In early 2025, Genesis signed a $500 million Memorandum of Understanding with the Katsina State Government to roll out decentralised clean energy infrastructure across the northern state. The initiative targets hospitals, schools, and government facilities as a first step in building what executives describe as “replicable models” for state-led electrification.

The first phase includes a 1,000-kilowatt solar system with matching battery storage at the Katsina Government House and smaller installations at public health facilities, including Katsina General Hospital. Together, these projects form part of a broader 10-megawatt pipeline that Genesis aims to complete in the state.

“This is not about building a single showcase project,” said one Genesis executive familiar with the plans. “It’s about demonstrating that decentralised, clean power can be deployed quickly, affordably, and in ways that directly improve lives. Once proven, the model can be replicated across Nigeria’s 36 states.”

The strategy reflects a broader shift in Africa’s energy landscape: away from a singular focus on national grids, and toward distributed systems that can bypass the chronic bottlenecks of state utilities.

Financing the transition

Genesis is no stranger to the complexities of financing clean energy in emerging markets. In 2019, it issued West Africa’s largest clean energy bond at the time, worth $36.1 million, unconditionally guaranteed by InfraCredit and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC). The raise gave the company both credibility and flexibility to scale projects across the region.

Since then, Genesis has invested over $150 million into clean energy ventures, from solar and battery storage to gas-to-power facilities. Among its more notable undertakings is an 84-megawatt private off-grid gas-to-power plant that supplies electricity to critical national infrastructure in Nigeria, reducing reliance on diesel and heavy fuel oil.

With a development pipeline of 4.5 gigawatts and nearly 458 megawatts already in operation or under construction, Genesis has positioned itself as a key intermediary between global financiers and Africa’s fragmented energy markets. Its access to equity risk capital and large-scale funding sets it apart from smaller players often constrained by capital scarcity.

A portfolio beyond solar

While solar remains central to Genesis’s identity, the company has deliberately built a multi-technology portfolio. Its projects leverage solar photovoltaics, battery energy storage systems (BESS), hydro, wind, and hybrid gas-to-power systems, depending on the specific needs of communities and industries.

One flagship example is the Banana Island Local Grid in Lagos, a distributed energy system serving more than 2,000 residents with up to 98% power availability. By replacing noisy diesel generators with a hybrid clean energy solution, Genesis has not only improved quality of life but also demonstrated the commercial viability of decentralised urban grids.

This flexibility is key in markets where one-size-fits-all solutions rarely succeed. “Africa’s energy future will not be defined by a single technology,” Genesis executives argue. “It will be a mosaic of solutions tailored to local contexts.”

From clinics to classrooms

The social ripple effects of these projects are hard to overstate. With reliable power, clinics can refrigerate vaccines, students can study after dark, and farmers can store perishable produce in solar-powered cold rooms.

The World Health Organisation estimates that nearly 60 percent of health facilities in sub-Saharan Africa lack reliable electricity. Genesis’s installations at hospitals like Katsina General represent a step toward closing that gap, enabling better maternal care, emergency surgery, and disease response.

Similarly, electrification projects in schools and community centers extend opportunities for education and digital inclusion, while small businesses benefit from lower energy costs and improved productivity.

A voice in global forums

Genesis’s influence extends beyond project sites. At forums such as the Africa Energy Forum 2025 and the Youth Energy Forum 2025, the company has emerged as a leading voice on Africa’s clean energy transition.

At the Africa Energy Forum, Genesis executives participated in a panel on “Financing Gas: Is 2025 the Year Financing Is Unleashed?”—arguing that transitional fuels like natural gas remain critical for Africa’s near-term stability, even as renewables scale.

At the Youth Energy Forum, the company emphasised workforce development, offering guidance to students and young professionals seeking careers in clean energy. It also showcased how it tracks CO₂ displacement across its solar and hybrid projects, underscoring a commitment to measurable impact.

This dual role—as both project developer and policy advocate—has helped Genesis influence the broader narrative around Africa’s decarbonization, balancing pragmatism with ambition.

Balancing legacy fuels with renewables

The tension between Africa’s fossil fuel wealth and the urgency of decarbonization looms large over every clean energy conversation. Nigeria, for example, is among the world’s top oil producers, and natural gas accounts for a significant share of its domestic energy use.

Genesis has sought to bridge that divide by positioning gas-to-power as a transitional tool. While critics argue that gas risks locking Africa into carbon-intensive pathways, Genesis insists that hybrid solutions are essential for maintaining reliability in regions where renewable intermittency remains a barrier.

“We cannot leapfrog into a 100% renewable future overnight,” a company spokesperson noted at a recent panel. “But we can chart a path that reduces emissions, displaces diesel, and builds the infrastructure for a sustainable energy mix.”

Measuring Impact

For Genesis, impact is measured not just in megawatts, but in lives improved. The company tracks outcomes such as reduced diesel consumption, CO₂ displacement, and cost savings for clients. It also emphasises community engagement, working with local governments and residents to ensure projects are aligned with social and economic priorities.

This emphasis reflects a broader shift in how investors and policymakers assess energy projects. Beyond financial returns, stakeholders increasingly demand evidence of social dividends—health, education, and gender equity among them. Genesis’s model, by targeting schools, hospitals, and underserved communities, is designed to deliver on that mandate.

Next steps

With less than five years until the 2030 SDG 7 deadline, the scale of Africa’s energy challenge remains daunting. Achieving universal access will require not just billions in new investment but also regulatory reforms, cross-border cooperation, and a willingness to embrace decentralised solutions.

Genesis Energy is betting that its state-level partnerships, diversified portfolio, and proven financing record will allow it to scale faster than many peers. The Katsina initiative, if successful, could serve as a template for other Nigerian states—and potentially across Africa.

For now, the quiet hum of solar panels and battery systems in Katsina may seem like a small step. But for patients at the hospital who no longer face blackouts during surgery, or students who can now study after sunset, the change is nothing short of transformative.

And for Genesis Energy, it is proof that a clean power boom doesn’t always arrive with fanfare. Sometimes, it begins with the lights staying on.