Koko的碳信用燃料赌注：150万肯尼亚家庭，然后2026年关闭

做的是什么生意

Subsidised bioethanol cooking fuel and stoves for Kenyan households, funded by international carbon-credit sales.

启动资金：US$100M+ in debt and equity incl. Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund; ~US$180M MIGA political-risk guarantee (2025)

起因

Founded in 2013 by Greg Murray and Sagun Saxena, Koko Networks launched its bioethanol fuel-and-stove business in Kenya in 2019 as a cleaner alternative to charcoal, selling fuel through neighbourhood agents and automated dispensing machines.

经过

Households grew from ~100,000 in March 2021 to 300,000 by December 2021, when TechCrunch covered the launch of Koko Club, a consumer-goods line sold through the same agents. Expansion to Mombasa followed, and the network eventually reached ~1.5M households and 3,000+ machines, with investors including Microsoft, Mirova and Rand Merchant Bank.

结果

Koko needed Kenya's Letter of Authorisation to sell compliance credits under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement and CORSIA, where credits traded near US$20. After 8+ months without it, the company shut down at the end of January 2026, laid off all ~700 employees and entered administration on 1 February 2026 with PwC appointed to sell the assets.

可借鉴之处

一个其补贴依赖于主权授权的商业模式，实际上是在持有一种政策期权，而非价格；一封拒绝信就可能使整个模式无效，无论消费者采用程度有多高。