Sosian Energy, a company associated with the late President Daniel arap Moi’s family, has successfully contributed 22 megawatts of renewable power to Kenya’s national grid, signaling a significant step in the country’s transition to clean energy.
Kigen Moi, a director at Sosian Energy, announced that the independent power producer has commenced the early commissioning of three out of five units in its 35-megawatt geothermal plant.
“We started the early commissioning this week and we are already pumping 18 megawatts and by Saturday we will do 22 megawatts to the national grid,” said Kigen.
This achievement positions Sosian Energy as the first of three independent power producers selected by the government in 2014 to construct geothermal plants under a public-private partnership, each with a capacity of 35 megawatts.
During the early commissioning stage, Sosian Energy has already delivered 18 megawatts of power to the national grid, with plans to increase this to 22 megawatts by the end of the week.
Kenya’s ambitious renewable energy goals are being propelled by increased utilization of geothermal resources in the Rift Valley, as well as the harnessing of wind and solar energy.
Geothermal energy is currently the leading source of electricity generation in the country, accounting for 49.8 percent of the total output from January to March. Wind power follows at 18 percent, while hydroelectric and thermal power contribute 14 percent and 13.7 percent, respectively.
Sosian Energy’s electricity is being sold to Kenya Power at a rate of Sh4.9 per kilowatt-hour, which is lower than the Sh5.3 per kilowatt-hour charged by Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen).
In contrast, some other independent power producers have priced their electricity as high as Sh195 per unit. The completion of the Sosian Energy plant, estimated to cost $79.15 million (Sh11.07 billion), is expected by August, placing the company ahead of UK energy developer Globeleq and Ormat Technologies in geothermal power generation, trailing only KenGen.
The construction of these geothermal plants faced delays due to challenges in securing financing for these costly projects.
Once the 35-megawatt Sosian Energy plant is fully completed, it will undergo a 30-day reliability test, after which it will operate commercially under a 25-year power supply agreement with Kenya Power. The other two companies involved in the geothermal initiative are Ormat Technologies and Quantum Power, with the latter having sold its license to Globeleq.
The establishment of the new geothermal plant in Menengai, Nakuru, will significantly contribute to Kenya’s green energy objectives and pave the way for the country to gradually phase out expensive and polluting thermal power generators.
