Reeddi

Reeddi is a climate technology company that seeks to bridge the gaps in electricity provision in Nigeria by offering an affordable alternative based on clean energy sources. Despite progress in recent years, 75% of the global population without electricity lives in sub-Saharan Africa. Those who do have access to the power grid experience regular blackouts and supply shortages, with Nigerians on average enjoying only 7 hours of grid electricity per day. Olugbenga had the idea for the Reeddi capsule as early as 2017 but the project finally went live in September 2019.

What Olugbenga enjoyed most about his experience at the 2019 One Young World Summit was the access he gained to like-minded people from all over the world, some of whom he is still in contact with. Reeddi has grown tremendously since then, with its sustainable energy capsule included as one of Time Magazine’s best inventions of 2021. The capsules are solar-powered and can be rented for a small daily fee. They are designed to be movable and can be used across multiple environments over a day, with one capsule able to power a wide range of electrical devices. Currently, 500 capsules are operational but Olugbenga hopes to scale this significantly in the coming year.

Through its capsule system, Reeddi provides 1,000 days of clean electricity every month, with a customer base of over 600 businesses and households. Olugbenga has also established a leasing platform, TempOwn, where people can rent critical infrastructure including the Reeddi capsules and other essential equipment. TempOwn is an insurance-covered platform and users can see the value of the emissions they save by renting from it. Since beginning operations, it has had around 800 active users across all fields.

“The access to like-minded people was probably one of the reasons I enjoyed my One Young World experience. Being within the One Young World Community gives you credibility. When we got the Time Best Inventions award, stuff from One Young World came up when they asked about what I've done.”