Infrastructure
KenGen Completes Work on Sh34bn Olkaria Power Plant
Olkaria 1 Unit 6 will inject 83MW into the national grid.
The Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) has built a new geothermal power plant in Naivasha – raising its stock of green energy by 83 megawatts.
Dubbed Olkaria 1 Unit 6, the plant will boost KenGen’s geothermal power capacity which now stands at 533.8MW following the completion of Olkaria 1, 4, and 5 plants.
“KenGen is planning to add another 720MW to the national grid, mainly from green sources,” President Uhuru Kenyatta said during the plant’s groundbreaking in Dec. 2018.
The Olkaria 1 Unit 6 project, which is funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the European Investment Bank, has been undertaken by Japan’s Marubeni Corporation at Sh34 billion.
According to KenGen, the geothermal power unit is undergoing tests ahead of official commissioning next month as Kenya seeks to raise its stock of green energy.
The company is exploring more geothermal power in the Eburru area and rehabilitating the existing geothermal power plants in Olkaria, about 100km northwest of Nairobi.
RELATED: Finnish firm wins deal to build 80MW solar plants in Kenya
KenGen has an installed capacity of 1,631 MW with the leading energy type being hydro (818MW) followed by geothermal at 534MW, thermal at 253.5MW, and wind at 25.5MW.
The company expects to generate 2,029MW from geothermal by 2028.
An extra 90MW sourced from hydropower, 410MW from wind, and 40MW of solar energy is expected to raise the firm’s total capacity to 4,200MW – nearly double the country’s current total installed capacity of 2,336MW.
In 2019, Kenya was ranked fifth globally in an annual Bloomberg index measuring investments and opportunities in clean energy, highlighting the country’s position as the centre of renewable energy in Africa.
RELATED: Toshiba Wins Deal to Supply Turbines for Olkaria Upgrade
The country scored 2.52 on the BloombergNEF 2019 Climatescope index, behind China (2.59), Brazil (2.76), Chile (2.85) and India (2.93).
Kenya’s rise into the global top five was backed by the rising capacity of solar, wind, and geothermal, which now account for about 65% of the country’s energy sources.
KenGen Seeks Sh590bn to Add 1,500MW to National Grid
The company has secured financial backing for a 300MW geothermal project.
Cash Crunch Stalls Work on Sh82bn Thwake Dam
The government has so far spent over Sh36 billion on the project.
Turkish Firm Begins $3bn Uganda Railway Project
Yapı Merkezi is expected to complete the 272-kilometre railway in 48 months.
Benson Ndeta Withdraws Sh28bn Bamburi Takeover Bid
Amsons Group offered Sh23.6bn to acquire 100% of Bamburi shares.
Kenya Plans Underwater Museum for Shipwrecks
The facility will be the first of its kind in the sub Saharan Africa.
Sindalah: First Neom Project in Saudi Arabia Opens
The project features 440 hotel rooms, 88 villas, and 218 serviced apartments.