- Chirchir noted that most of the country’s electricity supply comes from the Eastern side of the country.
- Kenya has managed to increase her electricity production from 1, 600 megawatts (MW) to about 3,300Megawatts in 2023
Energy Cabinet Secretary, Mr Davis Chirchir, has called on all the County Governments to set aside funds for investment in the electricity sector to help stabilize supply to the national grid. Chirchir noted that most of the country’s electricity supply comes from the Eastern side of the country. Still, Western Kenya and the rest of the country also have the potential to produce some electricity for the country by harnessing the available resources to produce electricity from hydro, solar sources and wind sources to help meet the growing energy needs.
The CS also called upon Members of Parliament to set aside money from the National Government Constituency Development Fund (CDF – NG) kitty for investment in electricity generation to help meet demand. He said, “The country’s electricity supply currently stands at 75 per cent of the households, and this can be grown to cover 100 per cent of the country if collaboration between the national and the country government and partners is enhanced”.
The CS stated that Kenya has managed to increase her electricity production from 1, 600 megawatts (MW) to about 3,300Megawatts in 2023 with the construction of the Ethiopian line bringing about 200megawatts (MW) of power from the neighbouring country and increasing inter-country trade. He said, “We want to continue being a market leader in renewable energy and grow the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from manufacturing from seven per cent to over 14 per cent and continue positioning the country as a preferred investment destination through cheap energy.”
According to Chirchir, Kenya is set to retire its investments in thermal sources and transition entirely to green renewable energy generation by 2030. Kenya’s energy generation mix comprises hydro at 838 MW, geothermal at 863 MW, two per cent from biogas cogeneration, wind at 437 MW and solar at 173 MW.