Kenya’s resolve to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy as a driver of economic development was announced as part of the statement.
KenGen announced that it expects to bring the 83 MW Olkaria I Unit 6 expansion project online this month or early in the new year, so a statement by the company.
Amb. During her initial visit to Olkaria, Naivasha CS, Dr Monica Juma, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Energy, said renewable energy is Kenya’s preferred alternative, adding that the measure will also assist encourage foreign investment in the country’s energy sector. Maj. Gen (Rtd) Dr. Gordon Kihalangwa, the Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Energy, accompanied her.
During the meeting, KenGen’s CEO, Rebecca Miano, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to supporting the Kenyan government’s goal of using 100 percent renewable energy by 2030 as a means of combating climate change.
“We are at an advanced stage of construction of 83MW Olkaria I unit 6 and we expect this to be added to the grid between December this year and early next year,” said Miano, adding, “this will further push our green energy portfolio and help drive down the cost of electricity in Kenya by displacing thermal energy.”
For his part, KenGen Chairman, General (Rtd.) Samson Mwathethe, reiterated KenGen’s commitment to clean energy deployment and thanked the government and development partners for support in the delivery of power projects.
“The Board will continue to work with the Government and other stakeholders in the energy and development sectors to ensure we grow Kenya’s energy capacity because we know that this is how we can fast-track economic development in Kenya,” said General (Rtd.) Mwathethe.
CS Juma’s visit comes only a month after fresh figures revealed that Kenya’s power consumption reached a new all-time high of 2,036MW, the most in the country’s history, indicating a strong rebound in demand since the COVID-19 outbreak began in March 2020.
At the same time, the country recorded a new energy gross demand peak of 36,381MWh mostly drawn from renewable energy sources as the economy responds positively to the lifting of some of the COVID-19 related restrictions.
National energy generator, Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen), contributed to the largest jump in renewable energy share with the company scaling up production in its geothermal, hydro and wind power stations to meet the growing demand.
