Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) is considering selling a 19% stake in order to invest in energy generation projects, according to its managing director Eddy Njoroge. The major power utility generates about 1,000 MW of electricity, roughly 80% of Kenya’s overall electricity supply, and it plans to add another 45 MW of wind power to the grid by 2012.
"We want to privatize further, perhaps looking at a strategic investor with 19%," Njoroge told reporters while on a tour of its geothermal plant in Naivasha. He added the company planned to spend $4.59 billion on production projects by 2018/19, out of which, $1 billion has already been secured. Currently, the government owns 70% of KenGen.
The Kenyan government had previously announced that it would sell a bond in order to finance some renewable energy projects last year after the global economic crisis decreased investor appetite. However, the government later announced that it would not make the final decision on offering the international bond until after the financial year ended on June 30.
Njoroge said that a bond, including the international bond, was an option to fund renewable energy projects and decrease the country’s dependency on hydro electricity. So far KenGen has racked up $1 billion from five funding agencies, and other funding options could include partnerships, export credit agencies, BOOTs, and a multi-currency bond.
KenGen is targeting to produce 49% of its power supply from geothermal by 2018, from its current 150 MW from geothermal and aims to add another 280 MW by 2013. "We intend to have 1,260 MW by 2018," Njoroge said. The government targets at least 5,000 MW of geothermal energy by 2030. KenGen also aims to put up a coal plant by 2014.
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