Since April 2024, when the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) increased the light bill in the country, business owners and individuals have been finding it difficult to pay the electricity bills. Hence, prompting them to switch to solar.
However, one of the major problems that Nigerians face when they want to go solar is finance. The truth is that installing and paying upfront for a solar system is expensive. Hence, not all businesses and even individuals can afford it. As a sequel to that, Nigerians have resorted to seeking solar financing from different companies to enable them to install a solar system and pay for it bit by bit.
There are different solar financing companies in Nigeria, ranging from commercial banks to solar companies that are willing to offer loans to Nigerians who want to go solar but don’t have enough money to pay upfront. Some of the popular solar financing companies in Nigeria are FCMB, Access Bank, Arnery, SunKing, etc.
However, some of these solar financing companies may require you to make a down payment before they can offer you the loan. And since it is a loan, it normally comes with interest. We are going to discuss them in detail in the subsequent sections. Stay tuned!
List of Solar Financing Companies in Nigeria
Although there are many solar financing companies in Nigeria, we are only going to discuss the popular ones among them who have been offering renewable energy loans with low interest rates and minimal down payments. Some of them are commercial banks, while others are solar companies. Let’s take them one after the other.
1. FCMB Solar Energy Loan
FCMB is one of the commercial banks in Nigeria that offer solar financing. Their solar financing option is called a solar energy loan.
With FCMB solar energy loans, Nigerians can get up to a ₦30 million loan to carry out their solar energy project. This loan often comes with a 1% to 2% monthly interest rate with a 20% down payment. This means that before you can get an FCMB solar energy loan, you must deposit 20% of the loan amount you want to borrow. For instance, let’s assume you want to borrow ₦10 million from FCMB to finance your solar project; you will need to deposit ₦2 million as a down payment. The repayment plan for the FCMB solar energy loan is 36 months.
Summary of FCMB Solar Energy Loan
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦30 million
- Interest Rate: 1% to 2% monthly
- Repayment plan: 36 Months
- Down Payment: 20%
However, to access this FCMB solar energy loan, you must register your business and have a functional bank account with FCMB.
You can apply for this solar financing programme by visiting fcmb.com.
2. Fidelity Green Energy Finance Loan
Another solar financing company on our list is Fidelity Green Energy Finance Loan. This financing is done by Fidelity Bank. This financing option allows Nigerians to access up to ₦20 million to finance their solar project. This loan is designed to assist Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria to procure renewable energy solutions. With this funding, you can get solar energy systems, inverters, batteries, and solar panels.
Fidelity Green Energy Finance Loan Summary
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦20 million
- Interest Rate: 35% per annum,
- Mgt Fee: 1%
- Insurance Fee: 0.5%
- Residual Fee: 1%
- Repayment plan: 24 Months
- Down Payment: 30%
Just like FCMB, to get a Fidelity green energy finance loan, you will need to have an account with Fidelity Bank, and your business must be registered too.
You can apply using fidelitybank.ng.
3. Solar Financing by Access Bank
Access Bank also has solar financing options for Nigerians, which they call the Switch to Solar programme.
This financing option allows Nigerians who want to go solar but don’t have enough money to pay upfront to borrow up to ₦200 million. It has a relative repayment plan of four years.
Summary of Solar Financing by Access Bank
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦200 million
- Interest Rate: 3% to 6% monthly
- Repayment plan: 48 Months
- Down Payment: 30%
To start your application, visit accessbankplc.com.
4. WEMA Bank Green Energy Finance
WEMA Bank Green Energy Finance is another solar financing option for Nigerians. It allows Nigerians to borrow up to ₦3 million to finance their solar project and repay it in one year. This solar financing loan comes with 36% interest per annum.
With WEMA Bank Green Energy Finance, Nigerians can buy renewable energy solutions like solar energy systems, inverters, batteries, solar panels, and accessories even when they don’t have money to pay up front. However, to use this loan option, you will need to make a 20% down payment. However, the minimum loan amount you can take from WEMA Bank Green Energy Finance is ₦100,000.
Summary of WEMA Bank Green Energy Finance
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦3 million
- Minimum Loan Amount: ₦100,000.
- Interest Rate: 36% per annum
- Repayment plan: 12 Months
- Down Payment: 20%
- Management Fee: 1%
5. Imperium by Sterling
Imperium by Sterling Bank is another solar financing company in Nigeria. With Imperium by Sterling, solar enthusiasts can access up to ₦30 million to install solar in their home or business premises. This solar loan comes with a 4% to 6% interest rate with a 10-30% down payment and a flexible repayment plan of four years.
Imperium by Sterling Solar Loan Summary
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦30 million
- Interest Rate: 4% to 6% per month
- Repayment plan: 48 Months
- Down Payment: 10-30%.
This solar financing loan option has a relatively low down payment with a flexible repayment option but it has a high interest rate and you must have a Sterling Bank account to access it.
6. SMEDAN and Sterling
In the above sub-section, we discussed Imperium by Sterling, where we noted that Nigerians can access up to ₦30 million to finance their solar project. So, now let’s look closer at different solar financing options that Sterling Bank also offers.
In the SMEDAN and Sterling solar financing option, Sterling Bank partners with SMEDAN to empower MSMEs across the country by enabling them to access renewable energy even when they don’t have enough money to pay upfront.
However, to access the SMEDAN and Sterling solar financing option, you will need to open a Sterling Bank account and register with Databance. It didn’t stop there; your business annual turnover must be less than ₦60,000,000 to access this solar loan.
SMEDAN and Sterling Solar Loan Summary
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦7,500,000
- Interest Rate: 1% to 2% per month
- Repayment plan: 24 Months
- Down Payment: 10%.
7. SunKing Solar Financing
SunKing is a household name when it comes to renewable energy solutions in Nigeria and beyond. SunKing offers solar loans to interested Nigerians who want to go solar but don’t have enough money to pay upfront. SunKing allows interested solar enthusiasts to borrow up to ₦7,000,000 to install a solar system in their property and repay the loan over 12 months. However, their interest rate is relatively high, up to 7% per month.
SunKing Solar Loan Summary
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦7,000,000
- Interest Rate: 5% to 7% per month
- Repayment plan: 12 Months
- Down Payment: 30%.
8. Arnergy Solar Financing
If you are familiar with renewable energy in Nigeria, you may have heard about Arnergy. They are among the top players in the renewable energy sector in Nigeria. They offer up to ₦30,000,000 solar loans to Nigerians with a repayment plan of 36 months. The unique thing about the Arnergy solar loan is that you don’t need to make a down payment before you can access it. Once you meet their requirement, you can get the loan without dropping a penny as a down payment.
Summary of Arnergy Solar Loan
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦30,000,000
- Interest Rate: 4% to 6% per month
- Repayment plan: 36 Months
- Down Payment: 0%.
9. Dot Bank Solar Financing
This is a financial technology company that offers solar loans to Nigerians. They support different businesses and households in their energy transition quest when they don’t have money to complete upfront payment. They offer up to ₦10,000,000 to interested Nigerians who want to take out a solar loan.
Dot Bank Solar Loan Summary
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦10,000,000
- Interest Rate: 5% to 7% monthly
- Repayment plan: 24 Months
- Down Payment: 30%
They have a fast onboarding process but their interest rate is quite high.
10. Stanbic IBTC
Stanbic IBTC is the last solar financing company on our list. This is the largest commercial bank with introductory solar financing that is great for salaried remote workers. Interested borrowers can access up to a ₦20,000,000 solar loan at a 4% to 6% monthly interest rate with a 36-month repayment plan. However, you need to make a 20% down payment before you can access the Stanbic IBTC solar loan.
Solar Loan Summary for Stanbic IBTC
- Loan Amount: Up to ₦20,000,000
- Interest Rate: 4% to 6% monthly
- Repayment plan: 36 Months
- Down Payment: 20%
Which Bank is Best for a Solar Loan?
The best banks for loans are FCMB, Sterling, Access and Stanbic IBTC Bank. They offer solar loans that run in millions of naira with low interest rates and flexible repayment plans, which are up to 48 months.