BURN, a clean cookstove manufacturer and carbon project developer, has secured a USD 5 million investment from EDFI Management Company (EDFI MC) under the EU-funded Electrification Financing Initiative (ElectriFI).
The move aims at tackling household pollution and energy poverty in Africa.
The funding is expected to support the distribution of BURN’s IoT-enabled ECOA Induction Cooker (ECOA IDC), facilitating the transition of over 100,000 Kenyan households to electric cooking.
The move is projected to cut fuel costs by up to 60% and eliminate approximately 1.4 million tons of CO₂ emissions over the product’s lifetime.
Despite over 600 million people in Africa having access to the electricity grid, many still rely on charcoal, wood, or LPG due to the high cost of electric cooking appliances.
ElectriFI’s investment aims to overcome this barrier by enabling mass adoption of the ECOA IDC, which also generates high-integrity carbon credits and supports local manufacturing.
The ECOA IDC is integrated with a Pay As You Cook (PAYC) technology, allowing users to make affordable, incremental payments via mobile phones through the ECOA app.
This flexible financing model ensures full ownership within a year and broadens accessibility for low-income households.
“Kenya’s electricity grid is over 90% renewable yet more than 15 million households still cook with polluting fuels. This investment helps close that gap. With over 40,000 ECOA induction cookers already in homes across East and West Africa, we’re proving that electric cooking designed and built in Africa can be the future of clean, affordable energy access at scale.” Peter Scott, Founder and CEO of BURN, emphasized the urgency of the initiative.
The ElectriFI investment aligns with the European Union’s goals to enhance climate resilience, support local industries, and expand clean energy access.
