Ceremony for the Official Commissioning of the Olkaria I Additional Unit 6 and V Geothermal Power Plant
2022/7/26
On 26 July 2022, the Olkaria I Additional Unit 6 and V Geothermal Power Plant was officially commissioned by H.E. President Uhuru Kenyatta. Mr. Kitagawa Yasuhisa, Chargé d'affaires a.i. of Japan attended as a Japanese Representative.
The 83.3 MW of I Additional Unit 6 Power Plant is financed Ksh 9 billion by both JICA and European Investment Bank (EIB). The project was contracted between KenGen and Marubeni Corporation, and Turbines were supplied by Fuji Electric Co. Ltd. which supplied turbines into Africa for the first time.
The 172MW of Olkaria V is financed Ksh 41 billion by JICA. The project was contracted by KenGen and Mitsubishi Corporation, and Turbines were supplied by MITSUBISHI HITACHI POWER SYSTEM (MHPS).
The Official Commissioning was also attended by Cabinet Secretary Energy, Ambassador Monica Juma, JICA Kenya Chief Representative, IWAMA Hajime and other high level officials.
According to KenGen, after commissioning the Plants, Kenya will be the World No. 6 in terms of installed capacity of geothermal power.
In his remarks, Mr. Kitagawa mentioned the following intervention;
“As you're aware, Japanese technology may be relatively expensive, but it is durable, reliable and after-service level is very high and fast. It’s obvious when you see the fact that Japanese turbines delivered 40 years ago in Olkaria I are still operational. Please also think of second-hand Japanese cars or motorcycles in this country which look still new."
"The Government of Japan would like to follow the Kenyan Government's initiative, and continue to cooperate with Kenya in energy sector by utilising Japanese technology. Japan is making efforts to shift towards a carbon-neutral energy transition. In this context, Japan can learn a lot from Kenya, the country nearly achieving 100% renewable energy. Let us continue to grow while mutually helping each other.”
"The Japanese Government will make a strong contribution not only to the generation of electricity in Kenya, but also to the human resource development in the sector as well as the distribution of the electricity generated, and even to the industrialisation of the country itself through the use of electricity."
H.E. President Uhuru Kenyatta emphasised that electric power is essential for Kenya's future industrial growth and also expressed his ambition to go beyond the World No. 6 in the geothermal capacity. He also expressed his deep appreciation for Japan's long-standing cooperation in the energy sector, while confirming the continued cooperation between Japan and Kenya in the future.
The 83.3 MW of I Additional Unit 6 Power Plant is financed Ksh 9 billion by both JICA and European Investment Bank (EIB). The project was contracted between KenGen and Marubeni Corporation, and Turbines were supplied by Fuji Electric Co. Ltd. which supplied turbines into Africa for the first time.
The 172MW of Olkaria V is financed Ksh 41 billion by JICA. The project was contracted by KenGen and Mitsubishi Corporation, and Turbines were supplied by MITSUBISHI HITACHI POWER SYSTEM (MHPS).
The Official Commissioning was also attended by Cabinet Secretary Energy, Ambassador Monica Juma, JICA Kenya Chief Representative, IWAMA Hajime and other high level officials.
According to KenGen, after commissioning the Plants, Kenya will be the World No. 6 in terms of installed capacity of geothermal power.
In his remarks, Mr. Kitagawa mentioned the following intervention;
“As you're aware, Japanese technology may be relatively expensive, but it is durable, reliable and after-service level is very high and fast. It’s obvious when you see the fact that Japanese turbines delivered 40 years ago in Olkaria I are still operational. Please also think of second-hand Japanese cars or motorcycles in this country which look still new."
"The Government of Japan would like to follow the Kenyan Government's initiative, and continue to cooperate with Kenya in energy sector by utilising Japanese technology. Japan is making efforts to shift towards a carbon-neutral energy transition. In this context, Japan can learn a lot from Kenya, the country nearly achieving 100% renewable energy. Let us continue to grow while mutually helping each other.”
"The Japanese Government will make a strong contribution not only to the generation of electricity in Kenya, but also to the human resource development in the sector as well as the distribution of the electricity generated, and even to the industrialisation of the country itself through the use of electricity."
H.E. President Uhuru Kenyatta emphasised that electric power is essential for Kenya's future industrial growth and also expressed his ambition to go beyond the World No. 6 in the geothermal capacity. He also expressed his deep appreciation for Japan's long-standing cooperation in the energy sector, while confirming the continued cooperation between Japan and Kenya in the future.