A new solar photovoltaic plant is coming online in Kenya. The facility, which is connected to the state-owned Kenya Power grid, is located in Langobaya, Malindi District, Kilifi County, about 120 km northeast of the coastal city of Mombasa. The facility is equipped with 157,000 solar panels capable of delivering 52 MWp (40 MWac).
The plant is connected to Kenya’s national power grid via the new 220 kV Weru substation. The new solar farm is a project developed, financed and implemented by UK-based independent power producer (IPP) Globeleq, in partnership with Africa Energy Development Corporation (AEDC), a renewable energy company. The company, which operates mainly in East Africa, has a 10% stake in the deal, with Globeleq, a company owned by British investor CDC Group (70%) and Norfund of Norway (30%), holding 90%.
Diversifying Kenya’s electricity mix
“AEDC is delighted that the Malindi project has reached this important milestone and is contributing to Kenya’s supply of green and affordable electricity,” said Zohrab Mawani, AEDC’s Managing Director. Construction of the Malindi solar PV plant required an investment of $69 million.
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AEDC and Globeleq financed the project with loans from CDC Group ($32 million) and the German Investment Corporation (DEG), a development finance institution owned by the German development agency Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW). According to Globeleq, the Malindi solar plant is capable of powering 250,000 Kenya Power customers, while helping to reduce emissions by 44,500 tons of CO2 equivalent per year.
The new solar farm further diversifies Kenya’s power grid. The East African country already has one of the most diversified power grids on the African continent, powered by solar, biomass, wind, hydro, geothermal and thermal.
Jean Marie Takouleu