According to Wood Mackenzie's Power & Renewables and Energy 4 Impact report, nearly $1.7 billion in energy investment was distributed to energy access markets by the end of 2018. Total annual investment in the off-grid energy access sector exceeded $500 million in 2018. [caption id="attachment_13476" align="alignleft" width="277"] Solar panels with wind turbines and electricity pylon at sunset. Clean energy concept. [/caption] The report, 'Strategic investments in off-grid energy access: Scaling up the benefit of the future to the last mile', highlights the rapid acceleration of investment in the energy access sector. Global energy giants are investing significantly in off-grid access. According to the report, "The cumulatively announced investment of $1.7 billion was distributed to energy access markets by the end of 2018, with a distribution of $1.2 billion since the beginning of 2016." In 2017, the trading volume increased by 37 percent compared to the same period of the previous year, while the total capital composition is expected to rise above 50 percent in volume, signaling the scale-up and further maturation of the sector. In 2018, total transaction volumes increased by 22% year-on-year, with average equity investments doubling and debt nearly 5.5-fold. Benjamin Attia, Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables Analyst at Wood Attier and lead author of the report, said investments in energy access have accelerated rapidly over the past few years, but total volumes still lag behind the total amount of financing needed to reach universal electricity access by 2030. . "As the off-grid energy access sector begins to mature, strategic investors will profoundly shape the market's trajectory and redefine the customer-centric service business model again, expanding service offerings beyond basic electricity connectivity," he said.