BURN secures US$15M from European Investment Bank to expand clean cooking in East Africa

KENYA – BURN, a leading East African manufacturer and distributor of clean cooking appliances has secured US$15 million in financing from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to support the distribution of its ECOA Electric Induction cookers to households across East Africa.

This funding is expected to significantly reduce indoor air pollution, which currently causes 4 million premature deaths annually and disproportionately impacts women in developing countries.

EIB Group President Nadia Calviño highlighted the investment’s transformative impact, stating, “This investment will not only improve lives but save them. By expanding access to clean cooking, we can protect the health of women and families and reduce carbon emissions.”

Calviño noted that the project aligns with the European Union’s Global Gateway Initiative, which seeks to back impactful projects that foster sustainable development, particularly those aimed at poverty reduction and climate resilience.

Peter Scott, Founder and CEO of BURN, explained that the EIB’s investment will help scale the company’s clean cooking initiative to over a million households in Africa.

“We’ve already introduced our unique Pay-As-You-Cook (PAYC) electric cooking solution to thousands of homes in Kenya and Tanzania that previously relied on traditional charcoal stoves,” Scott said.

“With this investment, we aim to transition low-income households to clean electric cooking, using grids powered 80-95% by renewable energy.”

BURN’s PAYC model enables affordable, tech-enabled financing for low-income families who primarily use biomass for cooking but lack the upfront capital required for electric cookers.

This approach has qualified the project as a gender-focused investment by the 2X Challenge, a global initiative launched by G7 nations to encourage private sector investment in women in low—and middle-income countries.

The US$15 million funding falls under the Desiree Investment Envelope, part of the African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) Impact Finance Envelope, through which the EIB supports high-risk, high-impact projects that advance energy efficiency, electrification, and sustainable economic growth.

BURN’s ECOA Electric Induction cooker, bundled with a locally manufactured three-piece stainless steel induction cookware set, is designed to reduce indoor air pollution by 100%, decrease cooking time by 70%, and lower household fuel costs.

Equipped with cellular-enabled IoT technology, BURN’s cookers allow real-time monitoring of energy usage, generating high-integrity carbon credits by reducing approximately 2.5 tonnes of carbon emissions per cooker annually.

These contributions align with the EIB’s goals for climate action, gender equality, and economic development.

Since its inception, BURN has distributed over 5 million clean cookstoves across Africa, positively impacting 25 million people and preventing 26 million tons of CO2 emissions.

The company’s success highlights Africa’s growing potential as a sustainable manufacturing hub, generating job opportunities and showcasing the region’s capacity for innovative solutions in clean energy and environmental sustainability.

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