NAIVASHA, KENYA - Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) said that its new geothermal plant under construction in the Rift Valley is expected to generate more power than previous estimates.
Kenya frequently suffers power outages and is racing to wean itself off unreliable rain-fed hydroelectric dams. The country's electricity demand stands at about 1,700 megawatts (MW) against supply of 1,300 MW.
Eddy Njoroge, chief executive of KenGen, the country's main electricity producer, said that the 280 megawatt (MW) Olkaria IV plant was on track for completion by September 2014, with the first 70 MW coming online in December this year.
Tests for underground steam reservoirs had beaten expectations, he said.
"Power production from Olkaria (IV) could rise to 350 MW, from the projected 280 MW," Njoroge told reporters late on Wednesday in Naivasha.
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The Olkaria IV project is an extension of two existing plants at the site that already produces 150 MW of power.
Kenya, the first African country to tap the vast reserves of hot steam in the Earth's crust, is targeting production of at least 5,000 MW of geothermal power by 2030.
Njoroge said the Olkaria plant could meet 25 percent of the country's power demand by 2015.
Reuters
