The first phase of the Olkaria Geothermal power plant completed and commissioned a few months ago, has seen a reduction of electrical power bills in Kenya.
In the last three months KenGen has been able to save close to sh 9.0 billion by shifting from power generation by diesel Generators to use of ecofriendly Geothermal power. This comes even before the full potential of the Geothermal plant. Currently this Kenyan Geothermal power plant produces about 210 MW with an additional 70 MW expected by the end of this month.
This seems as good news for the citizens of Kenya who for a long time have been grappling with an acute rise in electricity prices day in day out. Doing a comparison between the month of November and the month of July there is a drop of 52% from the fuel cost charge per kWh in their electricity bills. More plans are underway to increase electricity production in the Kenya so as to be able to sustain its people as well as increase industrialization. This will drastically bring down the cost of doing business in Kenya which at the moment is a great huddle for foreign investors.
By 2017 the country is projecting to be producing about 5000 MW and this plan seems to be achievable considering all the projects that are underway including a 140 MW Geothermal power plant. The energy sector in Kenya is one that is gaining a lot of interest from the investment world considering the discovery of huge oil deposits in Northern Kenya as well as the large coal deposits in the Eastern part of Kenya. Off shore exploration is still continuing with reports indicating that there may be LNG around the island of Lamu in the Kenyan coast.
Most investors are also keen on the renewable energy sector considering that some parts of Kenya have one of the best wind speeds in the world as well as sufficient solar exposure to facilitate power production. A lot is expected from this very viable sector.