Kopere Solar Power Station, is a planned

solar Solar may refer to: Astronomy * Of or relating to the Sun ** Solar telescope, a special purpose telescope used to observe the Sun ** A device that utilizes solar energy (e.g. "solar panels") ** Solar calendar, a calendar whose dates indicate t ...

power plant in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

, the largest economy in the

East African Community The East African Community (EAC) is an intergovernmental organisation in East Africa. The EAC's membership consists of eight states: Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Federal Republic of Somalia, the Republics of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, S ...

Location

The power station would be located in the neighborhood known as Kopere, in

Nandi County Nandi County is a county in Kenya in the North Rift, occupying an area of 2,884.4 square kilometres. Its capital, Kapsabet, is the largest town in the county while other towns include Mosoriot, Tinderet, Kobujoi, Kaiboi, Kabiyet and Nandi H ...

, close to the border with

Kisumu County Kisumu County is one of 47 counties in the Republic of Kenya. Its borders follow those of the original Kisumu District, one of the former districts of Kenya, administrative districts of the former Nyanza Province in western Kenya. Its headquart ...

, approximately , by road, north-west of

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

, Kenya's capital and largest city. The solar farm would sit on approximately of land.

Overview

Kenya has ambitions to electrify 100 percent of the country's population, up from 70 percent in 2017. This development and the 55 megawatts Garissa Solar Power Station, owned b
Kenya Rural Electrification Authority
are aimed to diversify Kenya electricity sources, given the unpredictability of hydro-power in this East African country. The project was initiated by Portuguese energy firm Martifer Solar and was later acquired by the French firm in 2016. This power station is expected to supply at least 600,000 on-grid customers. In addition to the power station, the developers will construct a 33/132kV sub-station and a , transmission line to integrate the estimated 106GWh generated annually into the national grid.

Developers

The power station is being developed by ''Voltalia Portugal SA'', the

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

subsidiary of the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

company ''Voltalia''. The developers have already signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with electricity distributor

Kenya Power and Lighting Company Kenya Power and Lighting Company, commonly referred to as Kenya Power or shortened KPLC, is a public liability company which transmits, distributes and retails electricity to customers throughout Kenya. Location KPLC headquarters are at Stima ...

. Voltalia is expected to own and operate the solar farm and power station, after commissioning.

Construction timeline, costs and funding

Construction is expected to start in 2019. In December 2018, the

African Development Bank The African Development Bank Group (AfDB, also known as BAD in French) is a multilateral development finance institution, headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and ...

(AfDB) committed to lend US$18.17 million towards the construction of this power station. At that time, AfDB was also in the process of securing another US$11.6 million concessional loan from the ''Climate Investment Fund’s Scaling-up Renewable Energy Program'' (SREP), to lend towards this development as well.

References

External links