ThinkGeoEnergy – Geothermal Energy News

KenGen on track to commission 165 MW Olkaria V geothermal power plant in July

After more than two years since groundbreaking, the commissioning of the Olkaria V geothermal power plant on July is set to add 165 MW to KenGen’s geothermal power production capacity.

KenGen is gearing up to commission the Olkaria V geothermal power plant in July, with a capacity of 165.4 MW, adding to its fleet of steam plants. Construction works kicked off in January 2017, marking a slightly over two-year turnaround period from groundbreaking to completion.

Aside from the plant construction at a cost of Sh45 billion ($450 million), field work development has involved gathering of steam from different wells through a piped network funnelling the vapour to the plant.

The Olkaria V plant is set to operate in two units, each with a net capacity of 82.7 MW. Each unit has its own set of turbines and generators and each turbine stands to absorb 500 tonnes of dry steam per hour at temperatures of about 270 degrees Celsius.

The new plant is set to raise Kenya’s capacity of steam power injected into the grid to 855.4 MW from the current 690 MW. Presently, the country is ranked the ninth largest producer of geothermal electricity in the world and the first in Africa.

Source: Energy Siren

Exit mobile version