Government to Launch Lake Turkana Power Plant

Part of the turbines at Lake Turkana Wind Power farm at Sarima, near Lake Turkana in Laisamis, Marsabit County. [Ali Abdi/Standard]

Kenyans will enjoy an additional 300MW from the national grid following the completion of a 400KV transmission line.

The line will evacuate electricity from the Lake Turkana Wind Power Plant in Loiyangalani.

The project will be launched at the end of this month after more than 18 months of delay that saw the overall project cost almost double to Sh28 billion, up from Sh15 billion.

Energy Cabinet Secretary Charles Keter yesterday afternoon did a final simulation of the project at the power generation site ahead of the commissioning of the plant by President Uhuru Kenyatta. He promised a reduction in power tariffs once full evacuation of power from the wind farm begins.

“The completion of this project together with the 55MW we are expecting from the Garissa solar plant means we will be running less diesel even as the fuel cost charge will go up because of the new VAT on fuel,” he explained.

The delays have, however, come at a cost, with the owners of the Lake Turkana Wind Farm in Marsabit County slapping taxpayers with Sh5.7 billion in penalties for failing to complete the transmission line linking the plant to the national grid in time.

The 428-kilometre power transmission line was initially supposed to cost Sh15 billion but the Government had to engage a new contractor after Spanish firm Isolux Corsan went bankrupt.

State power transmission firm Ketraco awarded the contract to a consortium of two Chinese firms – NARI Group Corporation and Power China Guizhou Engineering Company, with the cumulative bill for the project going up by Sh13 billion.

Following the line delay, the Government had up to September 1 to complete the line or pay damages of Sh1 billion a month to Lake Turkana Wind Company thereafter. Energy CS Charles Keter did not say whether taxpayers would be subject to another penalty this month given the lapse of the deadline.