Agricultural firm Rea Vipingo has announced plans to start producing wind power at the Coast to curb inconsistent supply of electricity and reduce its operating costs.The company intends to produce 48 megawatts of power from 24 turbines to be installed in Kilifi County.
Rea Vipingo, which is involved in real estate projects at the Coast through its subsidiary, Vipingo Estates, is seeking regulatory approvals to undertake the project.
“The proponent (EnBW Kraftwerke AG) of the proposed wind farm is proposing to install 24 turbines with a capacity of 2MW each and approximately 80 metres high,” said the National Environment Management Authority (Nema) in a statement.
The company has previously cited inconsistent power supply as one of its major operational challenges.
“Poor and inconsistent mains power supply necessitates the use of expensive stand-by generators at all locations on a regular, almost daily basis,” said the company’s management in its annual report.
Energy costs have been listed as one of the factors discouraging the setting up of production factories in Kenya with companies opting for Egypt and South Africa.The energy produced by Rea Vipingo at the Kilifi wind farm will be transmitted to the national grid.
“The turbines will be connected via a medium voltage electrical transformers, which will be buried underground leading to an onsite substation. The substation will then be connected to the national grid,” reads the Nema statement.
The wind farm could become the fourth major wind power generation project in addition to a 5.1 megawatt plant owned by the Kenya Electricity Generating (KenGen) Company, which is already operational, and the planned 100 megawatt plant by American company, GE Energy and a 50 megawatt wind farm to be located in Ngong Hills area associated to the Kenyatta family.
The 50 megawatt farm to be set up by Prunus Energy Limited, in which Ngengi Muigai is chairman, is estimated to cost Sh11 billion.
Economic activities requiring energy input have grown at a faster rate than the investment in energy production, leaving a yawning gap between its supply and demand.
Current generation mix stands at 719 megawatt hydro, 163 megawatt geothermal and 407 megawatt thermal power — including 120 megawatt capacity of emergency producers.
The installed capacity is estimated at 1,400 megawatt against peak demand of 1,300 units, but frequent breakdown of machines or routine maintenance has seen the reserve margin dip to negative zone.
Rea Vipingo joins other listed companies who have taken the problem of energy production into their own hands in order to manage costs and guarantee consistent supply.
Mumias Sugar Company runs a 28 megawatt power project using fibrous waste from sugar cane, referred to as bagasse.
In June, Sasini Limited announced a tender for the supply of hydro-electric power generation equipment to be set up at its Ruiru Mills Estate. The company had hired
Devki Energy Consultants to help in procurement of equipment for the micro-hydro electric power generation project.
The firm said that the high energy cost was making it difficult for its exports, especially coffee, to compete in the global markets.
Athi River Mining is expected to spend about Sh8 billion in two years to install a 66 megawatt plant to supply power for its operations.
