The Turkana Geothermal Power Station is a

geothermal power Geothermal power is electricity generation, electrical power generated from geothermal energy. Technologies in use include dry steam power stations, flash steam power stations and binary cycle power stations. Geothermal electricity generation i ...

station under development 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. ...

Location

The power station would be located in the

Suguta Valley The Suguta Valley, also known as the Suguta Mud Flats, is an arid part of the Great Rift Valley in Kenya (Africa), directly south of Lake Turkana. Location The Suguta valley today is one of the driest parts of Kenya, with annual rainfall below ...

Turkana County Turkana County is a county in the former Rift Valley Province of Kenya. It is home to the Turkana people. It is Kenya's largest county by land area of 77,597.8 km2 followed by Marsabit County with an area of 66,923.1 km2. It is bord ...

, in the semi-arid north-western Kenya, immediately south of

Lake Turkana Lake Turkana () is a saline lake in the Kenyan Rift Valley, in northern Kenya, with its far northern end crossing into Ethiopia. It is the world's largest permanent desert lake and the world's largest alkaline lake. By volume it is the world ...

. This location is near the settlement of Katilia, approximately , by road, south-east of

Lodwar Lodwar is the largest town in north-western Kenya, located west of Lake Turkana on the A1 road. Its main industries are basket weaving and tourism. The Loima Hills lie to its west. Lodwar is the capital of Turkana County. The town had a popu ...

, where the county headquarters are located. This location is approximately , by road, north-northwest 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.

Overview

Reconnaissance surveys by a team from the

British Geological Survey The British Geological Survey (BGS) is a partly publicly funded body which aims to advance Earth science, geoscientific knowledge of the United Kingdom landmass and its continental shelf by means of systematic surveying, monitoring and research. ...

indicated the occurrence of a hydro-thermal system in the project area. In 2011, further surface studies revealed a high-temperature resource area covering , with sub-surface temperatures of about and an estimated potential to generate up to 1GW of base load geothermal electricity. Olsuswa Energy Limited, a locally registered company plans to develop this power station, starting with a 70 megawatt power station, which is expected to expand to 140 megawatts, over a five to eight-year period. The electricity generated is expected to be interrelated into the national electricity grid. In April 2018, Olsuswa Energy Limited signed a memorandum of understanding with the Turkana County government in the presence of the elected leaders of the community and the public. The development is expected to bring jobs and improved living standards of the residents.

Ownership

The co-owners of the project under Olsuswa Energy Limited are Olsuswa Power Limited, a Kenyan owned power developer owned by the

Manga Mugwe are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics an ...

family office and

Frontier Energy A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. Australia The term "frontier" was frequently used in colonial Australia in the meaning of country that borders the unknown or uncivilised, the ...

, Denmark. The project area covers an estimated .

Funding

The entire project is expected to cost US$1 billion, spread out over a 5-8 year period. The owner/developers expect to raise the funds though equity and institutional loans. In November 2017, the

African Union Commission The African Union Commission (AUC) acts as the executive/administrative branch or secretariat of the African Union. It is headed by a chairperson and consists of a number of Commissioners dealing with different areas of policy. The African ...

granted US$980,000 towards the development of this power station.

References

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External links