Kenya Seeks to Harness More Geothermal Potential

By George Okore

The two-day Kenya Geothermal Conference 2011 ended in Nairobi on Tuesday with the Kenyan government promising to harness and upgrade her geothermal potential to reduce reliance on hydro and thermal generated electricity.

Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka argued that the huge geothermal potential in the country necessitates   huge resource investment to propel the country towards   greater industrialization.  He argued the private investors to participate in geothermal prospecting, in order to meet the country’s rising power supply demands.

Energy assistant Minister Mohamed Mahmud said the government has contracted   companies from China, Korea and Japan for the fourth phase of Olkaria geothermal project in 2013.  “We are undertaking exploratory drilling for the first phase development of 400 MW with a commissioning target of 2016. The long term plan is to fully develop the prospect in four phases of 400 MW each," he said.

Deputy Director of United Nations University (Iceland) Ludvik S Georgesson stressed the importance of capacity building in geothermal development and promised to help developing countries in capacity building within geothermal exploration and development. The programme consists of six months annual training for practicing professionals from developing and transitional countries with significant geothermal potential. Priority is given to countries where geothermal development is under way, in order to maximize technology transfer. It’s operated in Iceland since 1979.

 Mr. Georgesson said they would continue to offer short courses in geothermal exploration on for developing countries   at Olkaria in Naivasha, Kenya. The short course series on geothermal exploration falls within the framework of UNU-GTP Millennium Short Courses that have been conducted annually in Kenya since 2005. The course usually attracts participants from countries which shares many geological features with the Rift Valley region.

At the meeting, Kenya wooed local investors to participate in geothermal prospecting, with Geothermal Development Company (GDC) Managing Director Dr Silas M. Simiyu saying that   communities should form cooperative societies, from where they can generate and sell geothermal power to the national grid. Dr Simiyu said Kenya’s geothermal potential, which ranges from 7,000 MW- 10,000 MW, was underutilized and called for more community investments in this new moneymaker.

Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) through its CEO Edward Njoroge promised to inject a further 202 MW into national grid next year from a mix of thermal power, renewable energy and rehabilitation of an existing hydropower dam. The total cost of Olkaria IV -- an extension of Olkaria I and II plants that already produce a total 115 MW -- is $1 billion, he added.

According to Mr Njoroge, KenGen is   currently exploring geothermal potential at Olkaria, Menengai and Eburru but only about 202 MW have so far been developed in Olkaria. “In the next five years alone, KenGen will require at least 4.5 billion U.S. dollars to implement projects with the capacity to generate 1 200 MW from geothermal wells in the Olkaria and Menengai fields in the Rift Valley,” he told the forum.