Kenya Targets 7,000 Megawatts of Geothermal Power by 2030

---

Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Kenya's power-planning scenario, Vision 2030, calls for the country to increase its installed generating capacity from the current 1,597 megawatts (MW) to about 17,760 MW to meet peak power demand of 15,000 MW in 2030, according to the state's power utility, KenGen.

Geothermal sources are targeted to contribute 7,000 MW of this 1,200% capacity expansion over a period of 17 years. Currently, Kenya has 202 MW of geothermal-sourced generation, with more projects in the pipeline.

Dr. Nicholas Marita, chief geothermal training officer at KenGen, says that Kenya has the geothermal potential to produce a total of about 10,000 MW. The East African region as a whole has equally great potential with the Great Rift Valley, which runs from the Middle East to Mozambique, which is in southeastern Africa. Geothermal manifestations such a hot springs, fumaroles and geysers are present in the region.

Marita said that to develop this resource, Kenya has an Act of Parliament that addressed geothermal issues, whereas most countries of the East African Rift System (EARS) have no strategy and inadequate legislative and regulatory framework, as well as inadequate site/project specific activities such as pre-feasibility studies, project implementation planning and negotiation of power purchase agreements.

Marita will be a speaker at the East African Power Industry Convention (EAPIC) in Nairobi in September, which will include a geothermal power summit.

For related information, see April 16, 2013, article - Global Geothermal Power Set to Double Capacity as Developmental Tool

. Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.