ENERGY next year or two we hope to bring in additional capacity of up to 385 MW , all from geothermal .” Geothermal sites need to be determined with care , he explains . “ We have been fortunate in the Olkaria area , where we ’ ve identified potentially 1,000 MW . So far we have only developed 440 MW there , so we still have a lot more to do .”
The future is geothermal , he firmly believes , but he is far from presiding over a one-resource policy . Hydropower will always be an important part of the mix and he keeps an eye on the natural gas reserves lately discovered in Northern Kenya , near Garissa , and at the coast . Additionally , KenGen has a wind farm generating 25 MW very close to Nairobi , and plans to develop another 100MW of wind power by 2018 . In addition private companies are interested in creating up to 500MW . “ We see a lot of potential in wind power ” said Mugo . “ Wind looks like becoming a big thing in Kenya , and we are part of a group of businesses developing wind power in the country .”
Coal is another possibility , as Kenya contemplates becoming a coal producing nation . According to the Ministry of Energy , the Mui Basin
A section of the 140MW Olkaria 1 power plant
“ We are looking at how the company may best provide leadership in the geothermal space regionally ”
Olkaria 1 power plant
– Albert Mugo , CEO www . kengen . co . ke 61