Koko Networks, an international technology company, based in East Africa and India, has created the world’s first Smart Fuel ATM network in Nairobi.
KOKO in partnership with Vivo Energy is mainstreaming bioethanol cooking fuel in Kenya, starting in Nairobi, through its network of KOKO Agent shopkeepers.
The firm is building its first fuel distribution network by deploying hundreds of “KOKOpoint” fuel ATMs across Nairobi and its environs, from Thika to Athi River, and from Kiserian to Limuru.
Betty Maina, Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Industrialization, said “The future is bright for affordable energy in Kenya. We have been seeking to answer the question of affordable energy and looking to find a working solution and I believe KOKO provides this opportunity.’’
KOKO’s Kenya Facility produces three core fuel distribution technologies.
KOKOpoint Fuel ATMs are built from hundreds of component parts, all of which are expertly assembled and tested by a skilled team of engineers and technicians at the Technology Production Facility, before being deployed into KOKO Agent stores.
The facility also produces the Smart Depot Systems and Smart Tanker Systems that enable Vivo Energy to safely control the flow of fuel through the last mile, from Shell-branded service stations, into a fleet of Smart MicroTankers, and finally through to the refilling of KOKOpoints at KOKO Agents.
KOKOpoints are IoT-enabled and cloud-connected, sending a real-time “heartbeat” to a high-tech Network Operations Centre, located at the Facility, where the team monitors the technical and operational health of the Network of KOKOpoints and coordinates customer and Agent service, field maintenance and optimises KOKO Fuel and KOKO Cooker logistics.
The Facility also contains an international-standard fully-equipped laboratory for testing fuel samples and emissions of both KOKO Fuel and other fuels in the market.
KOKO’s technology platform delivers major cost efficiencies and removes the need for a centralized bottling facility and disposable plastic bottles, and so enables bioethanol cooking fuel to deliver significant cost savings to Kenyan households, who have been suffering under increasing kerosene and charcoal prices.
KOKO partnered with Vivo Energy Kenya in 2018 to ensure the reliable supply of high-quality bioethanol fuel, in line with international safety standards.
Its solution can deliver over 10% of Kenya’s Paris 2030 carbon emissions reductions target, without requiring any government subsidy and in fact delivering major new taxation revenues to Kenya.