KOKO Networks, which is the leading clean-cooking fuel provider in Kenya, has stopped all operations throughout the country. This decision has generated multiple problems for more than 600000 low-income families. It also creates uncertainty about the future of economical green cooking fuels in the nation.
Customers received mass notifications on Saturday, January 31, 2026, informing them that services would stop immediately, with a promise of “next steps” but no clear roadmap. The shutdown leaves a void in a segment of the market that had become a vital alternative to traditional charcoal and kerosene, particularly among vulnerable communities across urban and rural Kenya.
The collapse follows a protracted dispute with the Kenyan government over carbon credit authorizations, a critical revenue stream for the company’s business model. KOKO relied on selling carbon credits internationally to subsidize its clean‑ethanol fuel and cookstoves for consumers. The startup lost its financial stability after it failed to obtain approval for credit trading, which led to management stopping all business activities and terminating employee contracts.
The company’s exit is expected to render at least 700 direct employees jobless, in addition to thousands of agents and vendors connected to its extensive network of over 3,000 automated refilling stations across Kenya. KOKO fuel provided its services to approximately 1.5 million customers before the company ceased operations, enabling them to decrease their dependence on charcoal and other environmentally harmful fuels.
People used KOKO as an energy solution, which helped them achieve cleaner and safer cooking methods that decreased deforestation and indoor air pollution. The current situation shows that Kenya needs to demonstrate its capacity to maintain homegrown clean energy systems, which depend on government approval of new financial solutions.
Environmental and consumer advocates are already warning that without alternative subsidies or policy adjustments, millions could revert to more harmful fuels, which would harm both public health and environmental conservation efforts.
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