SOGREA Opens Call for Application

‍The SOGREA Initiative opens its First Call for Pre-Qualification Applications, inviting renewable energy companies to develop and rehabilitate Green Mini-Grids in rural communities across Sierra Leone.

To view the Applicant eligibility requirements, click: Pre-Qualification Requirements

‍To view the List of designated Green Mini-Grid communities, click: List of GMG sites

‍To Register your interest to participate in the SOGREA Pre-Qualification click: Expression of Interest

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Salone Off-Grid Renewable Energy Acceleration (SOGREA) Initiative: Investment Support Window

The Government of Sierra Leone considers the mini-grid sector as a cornerstone of its electrification strategy, aiming to scale green mini grid deployment nationwide with up to 160,000 new connections across over 250 communities by 2030. SOGREA is designed to support this ambition by providing milestone-triggered capital expenditure investment support to private sector developers and operators to create a more enabling market environment for mini-grid development, while directly contributing to Sierra Leone’s Mission 300 National Energy Compact target of achieving 78% electricity access by 2030.

What SOGREA Investment Support Window Seeks to Achieve

SOGREA seeks to scale up access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy in Sierra Leone by supporting private sector investment in Green Mini-Grids and strengthening the broader enabling environment.

Through its combination of investment support and technical assistance, the initiative aims to:

• Encourage private sector entities to invest in the development and operation of mini-grid infrastructure by helping to mitigate perceived investment risks.
• Enhance the commercial viability of mini-grids and support end-user affordability in rural communities.
• Improve the quality and reliability of electricity services delivered to up to 30,000 households, businesses, educational facilities, health facilities and other productive users.
• Support rural economic development by expanding and diversifying off-grid energy solutions.

Through funding support from the EU and Danish Government, SOGREA is providing investment support in the form of milestone-triggered grants to private mini-grid companies to deploy 30,000+ new and improved electricity connections across various communities in Sierra Leone. These grants cover part of the capital expenditure associated with developing, expanding and operating green mini-grids and are disbursed only when agreed milestones have been achieved and independently verified.

The Investment Tracks

The SOGREA Investment Support Window comes under Work Package 5 within the broader programme scope, and is structured around three tracks running in parallel, all administered through the Universal Energy Facility. These tracks are:

• Work Package 5.1 (WP5.1):Development of mini-grids pre-qualified under the UEF’s prior Mini-Grid programme in Sierra Leone.
• Work Package 5.2 (WP5.2):Capacity expansion of existing high-demand mini-grids operational in Sierra Leone.
• Work Package 5.3 (WP5.3):Deployment of new mini-grids in locations where no funding commitments or permits are in place for greenfield mini grids.

Track 1: Work Package 5.1 – New mini-grids pre-qualified under the UEF’s prior Mini-Grid programme in Sierra Leone.

This Sub-Work Package provides investment support to Green Mini-Grid projects that have received Site-Specific approvals under the different funding windows of the UEF’s Sierra Leone Mini-Grid Programme. These projects have been pre-selected based on UEF’s technical and operational criteria and form a near-term deployment pipeline.

Track 2: Work Package 5.2 – Expansion of high-demand mini-grids operational in Sierra Leone.

This Sub-Work Package focuses on expanding capacity at existing mini-grids where demand signals are projected to exceed installed capacity. Under Work Package 5.2, SOGREA will support the expansion of generation and distribution capacity at high-demand sites, selected from existing mini-grids initially built through the support of funding from international partners (FCDO, EU, UEF, Government of Japan, UNOPS etc.). This track directs investment into mini-grids where there is already proven and growing demand for electricity services.

Track 3: Work Package 5.3 – New mini-grids in locations where no funding commitments or permits are in place for greenfield mini grids [open for new project applications].

This Sub-Work Package supports the development of new mini-grids in areas without existing mini-grid infrastructure. For Work Package 5.3, the Government of Sierra Leone has published a list of communities (link) designated as priority communities from which private sector companies are allowed to make singular or portfolio selections for Site-Specific mini-grid deployments. The list of sites are derived from the National Online Digital Electrification (NODE) platform of the Government of Sierra Leone. This track is positioned to deliver a structured pipeline of new mini-grids and reliable electricity connections in unserved communities across the country.

How SOGREA Works

The SOGREA Initiative combines targeted investment support with broader technical assistance to accelerate Green Mini-Grid and off-grid renewable energy deployment in Sierra Leone. The programme first strengthens the enabling environment for mini-grids across the relevant work packages, including support for evidence-based assessments, policymaking, improved regulatory tools, standardized sector data, capacity building and selected innovation pilots. These activities conducted under Work Packages 1- 4 and 6 - 7 help clarify rules, increase awareness, streamline processes and build institutional capacity, which in turn makes the market more attractive and predictable for developers and investors.

On this foundation, Work Package 5 provides results-based investment support for mini-grid projects. Using a milestone-triggered capital expenditure model, SOGREA offers investment support that is disbursed in phases once specific, pre-agreed milestones have been reached and independently verified. By coupling enabling-environment support with milestone-triggered investment support under Work Package 5, SOGREA aims to unlock private sector participation and deliver sustainable, scalable mini-grid access across Sierra Leone.

Frequently Asked Questions

A detailed Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document is available HERE.

Call for Proposals and Contact

The UEF is launching this Call for Pre-qualification Application under Workpackage 5.3 to short-list eligible companies. Thereafter, the UEF will release the Project Application Collection (Site-specific application stage) for the pre-qualified companies to apply for investment support for their identified projects.

Funding applications under SOGREA Investment Support Window will be administered through a secure web-based portal that allows project submission, review, remote verification, data analysis, reporting and disbursement.

Application and award procedures will be developed in line with the UEF Operating Manual and the Sierra Leone Mini-grid Regulations.

To view the Applicant Eligibility Requirements and to Register for an Expression of Interest to participate in the SOGREA Pre-qualification Application under Workpackage 5.3, kindly click on the  LINK HERE

For more information or questions about the SOGREA Initiative, interested parties can contact: uef@seforall.org

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