KenGen targeting large industries and flow firms to industrial park, Kenya

Packing house at Oserian Flowers, Olkaria, Kenya (source: flickr/ SP Foto's, creative commons)

Alexander Richter 16 Mar 2020

In efforts to attract investments into its proposed Naivasha Industrial park near the geothermal power plants at Olkaria, state-owned Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) is targeting flower firms and large industries as first customers for direct electricity sales, so an article by Business Daily.

In Kenya the monopoly of power sales lies with the electricity distributor Kenya Power, but an opening of the sector was stipulated by the new Kenyan Energy Act of 2019. With that KenGen and IPPs could be selling electricity directly as well, not just generating it.

KenGen is now waiting for approval of its proposal to sell electricity to flower firms and large industrial investors  from the country’s Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA), according to Cyrus Karingithi, KenGen assistant manager, resource development and infrastructure.

Being able to sell electricity directly would essentially be a big boost for revenues for KenGen.

Investors are offered a lower power tariff of Sh5/ kWh to set up business in the Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in Olkaria, Naivasha. The deal was approved by the regulatory authority EPRA.

There seems to be great interest in the industrial park for factory development with the offered electricity price which is roughly half of the market price for large-scale commercial consumers currently paying around Sh10-12/ kWh at peak hours.

KenGen has already been able to sell not only electricity yet also steam to flower firms. Oserian Development Company has been using geothermal heat from KenGen for its rose growing business over 50 hectares since 2003.

Source: Business Daily Africa