IFC, the World Bank Group’s private sector arm, invests in ICT infrastructure provider Flexenclosure
Flexenclosure has secured a US$24m (SEK160m) investment from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Industrifonden and Andra AP-fonden (AP2).

The new capital will be used to further develop Flexenclosure’s eSite and eCentre technologies, ”green” ICT solutions aimed mainly at the developing markets in Asia and Africa.

eSite is a portfolio of energy-efficient hybrid power systems for base station sites in areas where grid power is unreliable or unavailable. eSite can deliver a 90 per cent reduction in diesel fuel consumption, CO2 emissions and energy related operating expenses compared to traditional diesel based systems.

eCentre is a prefabricated, fully equipped modular data centre solution, to house and power data and telecom equipment. Optimised for energy efficiency and low total cost of ownership, eCentre is specifically designed to be fast to deploy and fully future proof.

“An estimated 800,000 cellular base stations in emerging markets rely on diesel generators for their power supply,” said Andrew Bartley, IFC’s Chief Investment Officer for Telecoms, Media, and Technology. “This is a great potential market for Flexenclosure’s innovative product offering. Its growth strategy is directly aligned with IFC’s goal to improve access to mobile-phone systems for people in rural areas in emerging markets while also reducing global greenhouse-gas emissions.”

“We have an aggressive research and development programme and are growing our sales operations in emerging markets. During the last year we have opened offices in Nigeria, Kenya, Pakistan, India, Malaysia and Dubai,” said Flexenclosure’s CEO David King. “Having IFC as a strategic investor will give us access to their global expertise and network, further enhancing our expansion strategy.”

IFC is a member of the World Bank Group and the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. Industrifonden and Andra AP-fonden are two large Swedish investment funds. IFC is a new investor in Flexenclosure, whereas Industrifonden and Andra AP-fonden are existing owners.