Kenya’s energy regulator, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), has said that the country’s geothermal reliance is too expensive. While the ERC admits the plants are useful when the country experiences power shortages during low rainfall and other incidents, they should not be relied on for a day-to-day power supply and instead more sustainable and cheaper alternatives should be sought.
Currently the earliest that Kenya can reduce its reliance on its nine thermal plants is 2019 when the first of nine can be knocked off the grid; that is if the government does not renegotiate the contract with the IPP.
According to data shared with Kenya’s The Standard, the country currently has seven 20-year contracts with IPPs operating thermal generators. The Kenya Electricity Generating Company Ltd (KenGen), which produces about 80% of electricity consumed in the country, has two remaining thermal plants. KenGen’s 60 MW thermal plant in Kipevu I is listed as the first to have its contract expire in 2019. The next to expire will be Kipevu II, whose tenure ends in 2021. The other plants will all expire after 2030, with the last expiring in 2035.
The ERC has also come up with new policy guidelines to regulate use of energy. According to the regulator, under the proposed guidelines, consumers who use electricity to boil at least 1,000 liters of water or more would be required to install solar panels, among a raft of other measures. ERC Director General Joe Ng’ang’a said the new initiative will help curb unnecessary power usage. Ng’ang’a said the policy will also help institutions and firms save on power and reduce their power bills. "We are working on the policy, which entails cutting usage of electricity through introduction of renewable sources of alternative energy to serve the needs of consumers," said Ng’ang’a speaking to journalists at a stakeholders’ workshop on electricity, renewable energy, and downstream petroleum in Nairobi.