Close Menu
    What's Hot

    Africa’s Startup Funding Rebounds: April 2025 Highlights

    May 20, 2025

    Everything You Need to Know About Africa Technology Expo 2025 in Lagos

    May 14, 2025

    Apply Now: Cascador Fellowship 2025 Opens for African Entrepreneurs

    May 13, 2025
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    Where Founders are StarsWhere Founders are Stars
    • Founder
      • Founder Journeys
      • Industry Leaders
    • Startups
      • News
      • Funding
      • Growth Stories
      • Startup School of Hard Knocks
    • Inside Startups
      • Culture Series
      • Hot Takes
    • Resources
      • Events
      • Funding Opportunities
      • Toolkits
      • Expert Insights
    • Get In Touch
    Where Founders are StarsWhere Founders are Stars
    • Growth Stories, News, Startups

    ClimateTech Hohm Energy secures $8m to scale adoption of rooftop solar across South Africa

    • February 22, 2024
    Hohm Energy Installer (1)

    South Africa – 22 February 2024 Hohm Energy, the South African Climate Fintech company that helps homeowners and businesses to go solar with accredited solar installers, product suppliers, and embedded solar finance, has today announced the successful final close of its $8m Seed round. The funding marks the largest seed round for a tech startup in South Africa totalling $8m, which was led by E3 Capital and 4DX Ventures and attracted participation from new investors, including Breega, E4E Africa, TO.org, Tekton Ventures, Sunu Capital, Musha Ventures, and Climate Capital Ventures.

    Hohm Energy will now accelerate the adoption of rooftop solar in the region by investing in its new cutting-edge climate fintech strategy, additionally bolstering its tech, product innovation and solar installer skills development to make rooftop solar more accessible, trusted and affordable for everyone.

    Launched in 2021 by Tim Ohlsen and Emir Gluhbegovic, Hohm Energy has revolutionised the entire end-to-end solar journey, having built its own proprietary software platform and marketplace that helps connect everyone in the value chain. The company leverages technology to tackle challenges in South Africa’s $51.4B complex rooftop solar market, streamlining the design, scheduling and procurement process for installers and enhancing accessibility for buyers, mitigating delays, installation flaws, compliance risks and financing obstacles.

    Amidst a growing energy crisis, South Africa finds itself in the grip of escalating power shortages, resorting to daily electricity rationing to prevent a nationwide grid collapse. Eskom, the state-run power generator, has acknowledged a staggering power shortfall of over 6,000 megawatts at times. In addressing these challenges, Hohm Energy provides an alternative and sustainable energy source to the 7.7M addressable households, helping to ease the strain on the national grid. To-date Hohm Energy has generated over 17,000 custom solar rooftop designs using its solar proposal engine worth $190M, originating over $90M in finance applications to its retail banking partners.

    For solar installers, Hohm Energy provides them with the opportunity to gain trust and also effectively design, manage, finance and procure their solar projects. Hohm Energy customers can have their properties’ solar energy requirements determined digitally and effectively through the platform and they get access to credit financing and an order and fulfilment process that extends to after-sales services including repair and maintenance.

    Hohm Energy has struck partnerships with the majority of South Africa’s retail financial institutions, such as Investec, Nedbank, MFC, FNB, Wesbank and Capitec customers have access to the platform’s finance and credit scoring process to secure structured financing from these institutions. Additionally, Hohm now offers a solar subscription service to South African households, powered by Glint, making solar more accessible then ever before with an all new and digital solar purchasing experience.

    Tim Ohlsen

    Speaking on the investment, Tim Ohlsen, CEO of Hohm Energy stated ‘The energy system in South Africa is broken. ClimateTech is key to solving the current challenges through the provision of a scalable and sustainable alternative. Our robust software platform and fintech marketplace, which enables us to offer value to all stakeholders, is pivotal in enhancing the efficiency of rooftop solar installations and ultimately mitigating the severity of load-shedding being experienced. We are honoured to be collaborating with renowned global investors who share our passion and vision and are helping us achieve our mission on a larger scale’

    Significantly, Hohm Energy is poised to attain sustainable profitability in the current year. This achievement underscores the compelling investment potential Hohm Energy offers.

    Vladimir Dugin, Senior Partner at E3 Capital added “We are thrilled to announce our inaugural investment in Hohm Energy. With its tech-driven approach, Hohm is at the forefront of South Africa’s green energy revolution. The team is uniquely positioned to create a “one-stop shop” for all green solutions for residential customers and address existing challenges around energy supply.”

    Peter Orth, Managing Partner at 4DX added, “We strongly believe in Hohm’s mission to drive rooftop solar adoption across South Africa and beyond, and have seen similar businesses thrive in a number of markets globally. We believe Hohm is best positioned to bring this solution to South Africa where it is sorely needed given the state of the electric grid, and are thrilled to be backing Tim and his team at this stage of their journey”.

    Following the investment, the company will also be launching the Hohm School program, designed to train and empower local solar installers, through the Hohm Energy Standard for Solar Systems Installations (HESSSI), across the country.

    -ENDS-

    For additional information or interview requests with Hohm Energy Founder & CEO, Tim Ohlsen, please contact Yemi Kuti yemi@wimbart.com  or Timi Omilana timileyin@wimbart.com

    About Hohm Energy

    Hohm Energy is a South African ClimateTech platform that has set out to revolutionise the inefficient and overly complex processes that homeowners encounter when purchasing a solar energy system. The team has developed an innovative tech-enabled platform and fintech marketplace that connects homeowners with trusted solar installers and also facilitates structured financing. Acting as an aggregator for financial organisations, Hohm Energy enables customers to access credit and afford solar systems with ease.

    About E3 Capital

    E3 Capital is a leading investor in early-stage businesses enabling digitised, decentralised, and decarbonised business models across Africa. Presently, E3 oversees two Pan-African funds: Energy Access Ventures Fund with a focus on energy access and productive use of energy and E3 Low Carbon Economy Fund with a focus on climate tech and digital infrastructure. The team at E3 comprises of a young and diverse team, committed to the future of the low carbon economy. With its core team based out of Africa, E3 is uniquely positioned to help companies grow and scale, without compromising global sustainability ambitions. The team backs forward-thinking entrepreneurs endeavouring to bridge the gap between climate transition and growth in emerging markets with green energy as the enabler of these products and services. To learn more about E3 Capital visit: https://e3-cap.com/

    About 4DX

    4DX Ventures is a Pan-Africa Focused Venture Capital Firm whose mission is to connect people, ideas, and capital to create a vibrant African community. This is achieved by partnering with bold and gifted entrepreneurs who are building companies that will usher in Africa’s technology age and seeking founders who are focused, creative, have a growth mindset, and possess true grit. For more information please visit

    https://www.4dxventures.com/

     

    Africa’s Startup Funding Rebounds: April 2025 Highlights

    After months of slow investment, April 2025 brought a much-needed turnaround for African startups. According to trusted…

    Read More

    Founder

    Tomi Solanke: Helping Nigerians Invest In Publicly Traded Foreign Stocks With Trove Finance

    Resources

    Trademark vs. Copyright: How Startups Can Protect Their Brand & Content

    Resources

    Why More African Startups Are Prioritizing ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) in 2025

    Founder

    Dream VC Unveils KMBC: The Game-Changing Personality Test for Founders and Investors

    Founder

    The Journey Of Twiga Foods – Transforming Africa’s Food Supply Chain with Tech

    Expert Insights

    SAFE vs. Convertible Notes vs. Equity Rounds: Best Startup Funding Option?

    Demo
    FA Logo
    Twitter Facebook Instagram Linkedin
    Twitter Facebook Instagram Linkedin

    Links

    • Founder Spotlight
    • Culture Series
    • Expert Insights
    • Startup School of Hard Knocks
    • Events

    Company

    • About
    • Sponsored News
    • Work with Us

    Legal

    • Editorial Policy
    • Terms

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the latest news from Founder Africa: Where Founders are Stars.

    © 2025 Founder Africa

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie SettingsAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
    viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
    Functional
    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
    Performance
    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    SAVE & ACCEPT

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the latest news from Founder Africa

    FA logoblk_1