PricewaterhouseCoopers has taken over the management of Koko Networks after the Kenyan clean cooking fuel company entered administration, marking a sharp reversal for a startup that once served more than a million low income households.
The appointment follows months of mounting financial pressure that culminated in the layoff of over 700 employees on January 31. PwC partners Muniu Thoithi and George Weru were named joint administrators on February 1, according to a notice issued under Kenya’s Insolvency Act 2015.
Control of the company’s assets and operations now rests with the administrators, who will oversee creditor claims and assess options for recovery or restructuring.
Founded to provide affordable bio ethanol cooking fuel through smart stoves and automated fuel dispensers, Koko built one of East Africa’s largest clean cooking networks. Its model relied heavily on carbon credit revenues to subsidise fuel prices for households earning modest incomes.
That structure began to strain after Kenya’s energy regulator, Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority, suspended bio ethanol imports in 2024. The decision forced Koko to depend on more expensive local supply, tightening margins and disrupting fuel availability across its network.
More recently, the company’s efforts to secure government approval to sell carbon credits internationally fell through. Investors and lenders had tied more than $300 million in equity, debt, and guarantees to the expected carbon revenues. Without that approval, Koko was unable to sustain operations.
At its peak, the startup operated about 3,000 fuel shops across Kenya and Rwanda and counted backing from investors including Verod Kepple, Mirova, Rand Merchant Bank, and Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund. Administrators have asked creditors to submit claims within 14 days as the process moves forward.