Aleutia Computers Ltd, manufacturer of computers in the United Kingdom is in the process of building a solar powered school in every one of the 47 counties in Kenya.
Rubiri School in Nairobi was one of their case studies featuring what they call “Solar Classroom in a Box”. Their target is rural schools not connected to the electric grid.
The 2 million shillings ($20,000) classroom can be built in two days, and will have 10 computers for students and one for the teacher. The teachers’ computers will be pre-loaded with Wikipedia and Khan Academy offline software.
Tea production areas and forest distribution in Kenya – by Wikipedia
Kenya is among the leading tea producing countries in the world after China and India. Kenya produced a total of 369,400 tonnes in 2013.
Tea has been Kenya’s top forex earner until last year when it was edged out of the first position by diaspora remittance. Recent Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) data shows the trend continuing. Tea brought in Sh110 billion ($1.1 billion) compared to Sh138 billion ($1.38 billion) from diaspora remittance. Most of diaspora remittance is going to the real estate sector.
Tea requires significant rainfall when growing, and there is a correlation between tea producing regions and presence of rivers. These rivers could be used to set up small hydro projects to power tea factories.
The Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) manages more than 65 tea processing factories. It is the single largest producer and exporter of Kenyan tea. It plans to invest more than Sh4.8 billion (US$ 48m) to set up at least 10 – 16 small hydro energy plants on rivers close to tea factories. Funding is from the French Development Agency (AFD), and the total potential generating capacity is estimated at 20 – 30 MW.
At least six hydro energy projects are now complete or under construction, namely: 5.8 MW Gura (Nyeri), 1 MW Chania (Kiambu), 5.6 MW North Mathioya (Muranga County), 2-MW South Mara (Meru County), 1.5-MW Iraru (Meru County) and 1.8 MW Lower Nyamindi (Kirinyaga County).
Other projects in the pipeline for development include 2 MW Nyambunde, 3.6 MW Kipsonoi, 2.5 MW Chemosit, Kiringa, Ura, Kathita, Kiptiget, 6 MW Nyamasege, 1.5 MW Rupingazi, and 9 MW Nandi Forest.
KTDA Power Co., incorporated in 2010, will provide some of its tea factories with cheaper, reliable and clean renewable energy. This will cut down operation costs, and generate employment opportunities. The excess power will be sold to the national electricity grid via the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC).
The potential for hydro energy with capacities of less than 10 MW in Kenya is estimated at 3,000 MW. Non-tea producing regions should also initiate the development of such small hydro projects on rivers capable of generating electricity. The KTDA should also be more equitable and develop power projects in all tea growing regions rather than focusing only on Mt. Kenya region.
Lake Turkana Region from Space – by astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti
The massive Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) project is currently under construction on the Blue Nile River. It started on April 2011 and now is more than 40% complete. The completion is expected in 2017, and the projected output is expected to be as high as 6000 MW.
The hydro-power potential of Ethiopia is more than 45,000 MW of electricity. Apart from local utilization, Ethiopia would like to make this hydro-power a major national export to neighboring countries.
The GERD project has caused a lot of concern especially in Egypt, which rely heavily on the Nile for its livelihood. The dam may seriously reduce the flow of river water reaching downstream. The Blue Nile River from the Ethiopian highlands accounts to about 86% of the Nile River’s water.
Unlike the GERD project, Gibe III dam project has revised much less publicity.
The Gibe III hydroelectric plant is located in southwest Ethiopia. The US$1.8 billion project was formally launched in 2008 and is almost complete – 98.5% complete. The dam has 10 turbines, each with 187 MW generating capacity, totaling the projected capacity of 1870 MW. It will start running three turbines, producing at least 500 MW by September 18, which is the Ethiopian New Year according to the Julian calendar.
The criticism to Ethiopia’s Gibe III dam is that it is a threat to Kenya’s Lake Turkana, the world’s largest desert lake. It has been likened to be the next Aral Sea in Central Asia, which has suffered an irreparable damage.
The project has already been linked to severe starving experienced by the Kwegu people. The 200,000 indigenous tribe in southwest Ethiopia.
Lake Turkana gets 90% of its water from the Omo River. Water reduction to the lake would make life difficult for the communities depending on Lake Turkana for their livelihoods, especially the Turkana herders and fishermen who will pay a heavy price. This may further foment insecurity, and disputes over grazing or water rights may escalate in the already volatile region.
Kenya has already made plans to purchase power from the Gibe III dam. This is despite the fact that Kenya’s Turkana people who have no voice may be impacted. Further studies also need to be done on the effects posed by Gibe III dam and irrigation projects in the South Omo region have on Lake Turkana resources over the years.
Biogas is gaseous fuel. It is produced by anaerobic degradation process of organic matter by bacterial consortium. The biomass is converted into biogas and is composed mainly of methane (98%), and carbon dioxide. The biogas is clean, and renewable energy source.
Harvesting the biogas generated from anaerobic digestion (AD) of organic matter, makes the biogas available for use as fuel for direct heating, electrical generation and other uses.
Biojoule an associate company of Tropical Power Energy Group in Naivasha, Nakuru County has opened AD biogas power plant on the shores of Lake Naivasha with an output of a 2.4 MW. It is now connected to the nation power grid by Kenya Power, which makes it the first in Africa. The power is enough to power about 8,000 households
The feedstock is about 150 tonnes per day of organic waste, which is obtained from 800-hectare Gorge Farm owned and operated by VP Group, a fresh-produce horticultural exporter company in East Africa. The biogas made from biomass energy feedstocks is then burned to produce electricity. The remaining undigested solids is used as organic fertilizer, obviating the need of synthetic fertilizers overreliance.
The cost of the plant is US$ 7.5 million, and it took less than a year to build. Its lifespan is projected to be about 25 years, and they expect to recoup the investment cost within 6 years.
The biogas power project has added diversity to Kenya’s distributed energy mix. It is an excellent concept and vital to Kenya’s future energy security. The same technology can applied to produce biogas from municipal organic waste in Kenya big towns.
Solarjoule, another associate company of Tropical Power will also be embarking on constructing a further 10MW solar photovoltaic next year in the same vicinity to add to the national grid.
Geothermal energy is among renewable energy sources. It is derived from natural steam generated by heat deep in the earth’s crust, especially from volcanic-active belts.
The Great Rift Valley transverse Kenya from the north to the south. It is an area known for extinct, latent and active volcanic activity. This makes it an ideal location for generating geothermal energy.
The Olkaria area is a region located in Kenya’s Rift Valley. It is home to the largest geothermal project in Africa. It has been used to generate clean geothermal electrical power. It is estimated that the Olkaria area has a total potential of 2,000 MW, which is almost equivalent to current electricity demand in Kenya.
The Olkaria I commercial electricity generation started in 1981 with 15 MW. Similar capacity generation was added in 1982 and 1985 to make a total output of 45 MW. There was a steady increase over the years. At the end of 2014, an additional 140 MW was added to the national grid to make a total of 280 MW.
In the first half of 2015, Kenya imported 27.97 million kWh of electricity from Ethiopia (~5%) and Uganda (~95%). This is a drop of 29.94 million kWh compared to a similar period in 2014. The additional 140 MW increase in electrical energy added to the national power grid by Olkaria 1 geothermal power plant necessitated a sharp slump in power imports by 51.7%. This has also resulted in a fall in power bills to its customers.
This is good news for East Africa’s largest economy. This follows a rise in energy demand from the growing industries and increased electrical connectivity to its citizens which is now roughly 37% of the total population. This is against Kenya’s ambitious plan to connect 70% of its population to the electric power grid by 2017.
Kenya's Energy Future 