Nigerians Report Online: MTN Nigeria and Nova-Lumos Partner to Bring Affordable Alternative Mobile Electricity to Nigeria for the First Time

LAGOS, Nigeria, April 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
MTN, the leading ICT company in Nigeria and Nova-Lumos, the world's first distributed utility provider, announced their collaboration today on a next-generation alternative "mobile electricity" service. The Nova-Lumos service will provide alternative electricity to MTN customers who are living in rural areas across Nigeria and are not connected to the electricity grid.

The Nova-Lumos service is provided using a solar panel and an indoor unit that allows MTN customers to subscribe to alternative electricity on demand using their mobile phone. With Nova-Lumos, MTN customers can replace kerosene, candles and flashlights with modern electricity that can power significant lights, cellphones, fans, PCs or laptops, radios, TVs and other small electronic devices, all at once, every day. "By paying for usage only in small payments, the same way our customers purchase airtime and other mobile services, MTN and Nova-Lumos will offer an innovative and widely-accessible service for all MTN customers," said Michael Ikpoki, MTN Nigeria CEO. "MTN is committed to investing in the future of mobile electricity to our customers across Nigeria," he added.

The first Nova-Lumos systems will be publicly available on the MTN service points for the general public soon. A future announcement about the systems' availability will be made by MTN.
"We are very excited about our partnership with MTN which will enable us to distribute the Nova-Lumos power systems across Nigeria and touch millions of lives," said David Vortman, CEO and Co-Founder at Nova-Lumos. "One of our guiding principles is that the Nova-Lumos service must be affordable and accessible to anyone in Nigeria in order to have a meaningful impact on the Nigerian electricity market," he emphasized.

Nova Lumos in partnership with MTN Nigeria received funding from the GSMA's Mobile Enabled Community Services (MECS) Innovation Grant Fund with the support of the UK Government. This grant is awarded to organizations developing innovations that improve access to energy and water among undeserved communities by leveraging mobile technology and infrastructure. The MECS Innovation Fund has helped to highlight the demand for mobile-enabled services and the role that mobile can play in supporting access to basic utility services across rural and urban markets.

About MTN Nigeria Communications Limited

MTN Nigeria Communications Limited, is the leading ICT company in Nigeria providing digital global system for mobile telecommunication and other value added services for customers in Nigeria and West Africa. Its products and services include various packages, value added services, Internet services, international roaming, phones and devices. For more information go to http://www.mtnonline.com

About Nova-Lumos
Nova-Lumos is the world's first distributed utility provider, bringing affordable, modern and clean electricity to communities that have been living off the grid. By providing clean and affordable solar power and an innovative financing plan, Nova-Lumos removes old barriers and brings modern energy into off-grid homes and small businesses. For more information go to http://www.nova-lumos.com

About GSMA
The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide. Spanning more than 220 countries, the GSMA unites nearly 800 of the world's mobile operators with 250 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and Internet companies, as well as organisations in industry sectors such as financial services, healthcare, media, transport and utilities. The GSMA also produces industry-leading events such as Mobile World Congress and Mobile Asia Expo. For more information, please visit the GSMA corporate website at http://www.gsma.com. Follow the GSMA on Twitter: @GSMA.

Media Contacts

Funmi Onajide
GM, Corporate Affairs
MTN Nigeria
funmilom@mtnnigeria.net
+234-08032006859
http://www.mtnonline.com
Davidi Vortman
CEO and Co-Founder
Nova-Lumos
davidi@nova-lumos.com
+972-52-8544654
http://www.nova-lumos.com

Christian Prior (Brussels)
GSMA
CPrior@webershandwick.com
+32(0)2-894-90-13
http://www.gsma.com

GSMA Press Office
pressoffice@gsma.com