Kenya to host sub-Saharan Africa's largest windfarm

Mwembetayari · 2012-03-29T02:32:18+00:00

The Lake Turkana Wind Power project aims to provide reliable, low-cost wind power to the Kenya national grid, allowing the country to reduce its dependency on hydroelectric power Kenya's remote Turkana region was briefly a top Twitter trend on Monday after British firm Tullow Oil said it had struck oil in one of the east African country's poorest areas. The news prompted a flurry of #TurkanaOil tweets with some predicting a windfall but many others wondering whether oil would be a blessing or a curse. Somewhat ironically, as Kenya dreams of joining Africa's oil giants, the arid region surrounding the jade waters of Lake Turkana is already poised to make a serious contribution to Kenya's ever-growing energy needs with the construction of sub-Saharan Africa's largest windfarm. Construction on the euro 582m Lake Turkana Wind Power project(LTWP) is due to start in June, pending the finalisation of risk guarantees from financial institutions IDA and MIGA, both part of the World Bank, according to company officials. "The World Bank Group has been working with the Kenyan government and Kenya Power on this since August last year. They are completing their internal approval processes including the due diligence on the project. They are well advanced and we hope they will have completed and reached their board approvals in the next two months," Carlo Van Wageningen, head of LTWP, told the Guardian in an email response to questions. The ambitious project, which is backed by the African Development Bank, marks the largest single private investment in Kenya's history, and should allow the country to diversify from hydroelectric power, which provides around 60% of its electricity needs but is prone to drought and irregular rainfall, leading to blackouts and shortages that dampen economic growth. Kenya to host sub-Saharan Africa's largest windfarm | Global development | guardian.co.uk

Thread starter Mwembetayari
Start date Mar 29, 2012

Mwembetayari

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Kenya to host sub-Saharan Africa's largest windfarm

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