President Kenyatta launches Africas largest Wind Power

Kenya has taken one more step towards lowering the cost of electricity in the country.

This is following the commencement of the construction of the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project in Marsabit County.

The Lake Turkana Wind Power Project is billed to be the largest such project in Africa, with a capacity to generate 310 megawatts of electricity – accounting for 14 percent of the country’s current electricity generation capacity.

Eng. Joseph Njoroge, the PS Energy and Petroleum says: “It was very difficult to convince anyone that it is possible to inject 310 MWs into the grid and the grid could function.”

The Lake Turkana Wind Power Project will have 365 wind power turbines spread across 40 thousand acres of land in Marsabit County, near Loiyangalani which is located near the shores of Lake Turkana.

At the national level, the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project holds the promise of lowering electricity costs and the expansion of industries into areas that have long been viewed to be of little economic importance.

“We want to make Kenya an attractive investment destination. We want to lower our cost of living. And for this to happen, we must drive down the cost of power,” said President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Over 530 locals have already been employed to work on the project with another 1,200 people expected to be employed during the course of the project’s implementation.

And it is against that promise that President Kenyatta has called on leaders in northern Kenya to preach peace in the region.

“We must ask the people of northern Kenya to reject outdated and dangerous practices such as cattle rustling.”

The first 50 to 90 megawatts from the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project will be ready for injection into the national grid by September 2016, with the remainder of the project scheduled for completion by June 2017.