Kenya: Geothermal Success Story

Kenya: Tapping Into the Geothermal Energy to Power the East African Region Beyond the Nation

2 September 2011 - Ministers and technical experts in Ministries of Energy and/ or Mines from the African Rift Geothermal Development Facility (ARGeo) member countries, are meeting at the UNEP Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya for a High Level Geothermal Meeting

The two-day meeting organized by UNEP in collaboration with the Government of Kenya, Geothermal Development Company (GDC), and Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) is expected to raise awareness and sensitize high level decision makers about the unique development opportunities that geothermal energy presents and how member countries can benefit from ARGeo's support services, to accelerate the development of their geothermal resources.

Kenya is a concrete example of a country making a transition to a low carbon, resource efficient Green Economy. Using Kenya as an illustrative Geothermal success story, the ARGeo high level meeting is discussing among other issues, challenges and opportunities for development of geothermal resource in the East African Rift region, strategic approaches in development of geothermal resources, responses of various geothermal programmes to develop geothermal energy, country support for resource mobilization and financing of geothermal projects as well as best practices and lessons to be learnt.

Geothermal energy accounts for about 15% of Kenya's current power generation in operation, with an estimated potential of 4,000 MW. Preliminary estimates along the whole African Rift indicate that there might be some 6 GW or more of geothermal potential in this region read more>>>