Administrators have commenced the sale of assets belonging to Kenyan clean cooking startup Koko Networks to wind down the company following its collapse earlier this year.
The move marks a step in the insolvency process after the company ceased operations and laid off more than 700 employees in January when it lost access to a key carbon credit revenue stream.
Koko Networks collapsed after the Kenyan government declined to issue a Letter of Authorisation required for the company to sell carbon credits on the international market.
The decision prevented the startup from accessing carbon credit revenues that had been used to subsidise ethanol fuel prices for more than one million Kenyan households using its clean cooking system.
Founded in 2013 by Gregg Murray, Koko Networks attracted investment from organisations including Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund, Mirova, Verod-Kepple, and Rand Merchant Bank. The business also received a $179.6 million guarantee from the World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).
Administrators are now seeking buyers capable of completing transactions worth more than $15 million. PwC, which is overseeing the administration of Koko Networks Limited, has invited interested bidders to submit expressions of interest by July 17 and is expected to shortlist qualified buyers after the deadline.
The assets on offer include the company’s intellectual property portfolio, comprising patents, hardware designs and software technologies developed over the past decade. Also included are Koko’s stove and canister manufacturing facility in Sanand, Gujarat, India, as well as its fuel distribution network that supported more than 3,000 automated ethanol fuel stations across Kenya.
While PwC is managing the administration of Koko Networks Limited, the company’s affiliated Indian entities, Saarus Innovations Pvt. Ltd. and Koko Networks Pvt. Ltd., are currently undergoing voluntary liquidation.
Potential buyers are required to demonstrate sufficient financial capacity before gaining access to detailed information on the assets.
