Geothermal Development Co. has announced that it will increase exploration and exploitation of geothermal energy in Kenya to increase the country’s power output. The firm will divide potential exploration areas into blocks and hold a bid round for possible investors.
CEO Silas Simiyu said that over the past 30 years, the country has only harnessed 167 MW of power out of the potential 7,000 MW. "Geothermal in this country has a base load of 95% making it the most reliable source of energy," he said.
However, Simiyu said that exploiting geothermal energy requires heavy initial capital investment thus scaring away potential investors. He added that the government had committed itself to meeting the initial costs to develop the steam fields.
"This development plan aspires to power Kenya into a mid-income economy. To achieve this, GDC and KenGen will need trained experts," he added.