Kenyan firm plans 61 MW wind power farm
Mon Nov 14, 2011 6:34am GMT
NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenyan firm Kinangop Wind Park Ltd plans to
generate 60.8 megawatts (MW) of electricity for the national grid by
harnessing renewable wind power, it said on Monday.
The east African nation relies heavily on hydroelectric dams for
power, which have proved inefficient in times of drought.
Recent back-to-back incidences of low rainfall have slashed the
country's hydropower production, leaving consumers with high
electricity bills after producers turned to more expensive thermal
power.
"The project consists of building a 60.8MW wind power park in Kinangop
in order to supply additional power to the national grid," it said in
a statement.
The firm said it will apply for a power generation licence from the
sector regulator on December 5.
Investors in the east Africa's largest economy are turning more to
renewable sources such as wind and geothermal to help stabilise
supplies of electricity.
Kenya has several wind power projects lined up for implementation
including one for 300MW planned for the north of the country.
Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP) -- a subsidiary of Dutch wind power
firm KP&P -- behind the 617 million euro project, said in March
construction would start by December.
Kenya's main power producer Kenya Electricity Generating Company is
already generating over 5 MW from wind in the outskirts of the capital.
Another firm, Aeolus Kenya, is in the process of implementing a 60MW
wind power project to be located in Kinangop Plateau in central Kenya.
Kenya has set a target of 30,000 megawatt (MW) generation by 2030, the
year in which it hopes to become a middle-income country. At present
it has a capacity of 1,400 MW and is slated to install another
2,000-3,000MW within the next five years.
� Thomson Reuters 2011 All rights reserved
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