Kenya Plans To Nearly Triple Power Generation Capacity In Seven Years

Kenya plans to increase electricity generation capacity to 10,000 megawatts from about 3,500 MW over the next seven years, President William Ruto said, according to The Star.

Ruto said the planned expansion would create opportunities for investors in geothermal energy, power transmission, battery storage, industrial power, green hydrogen and electric mobility.

“In the energy sector, we are expanding national generation capacity towards 10,000 MW over the next seven years,” he said.

Speaking at the American Chamber of Commerce Business Summit, Ruto said the government could not deliver Kenya’s economic transformation alone and urged the private sector to provide capital, technology and expertise to complement public investment.

“Government cannot deliver economic transformation alone. Our responsibility is to provide infrastructure, uphold predictable rules and create an enabling environment,” he said.

“The private sector turns those foundations into factories, technologies, exports and jobs.”

Ruto said partnerships with businesses were central to Kenya’s development agenda and not merely an optional component of economic transformation.

“That is why our partnership with business is not incidental to Kenya’s transformation; it is indispensable,” he said.

He urged U.S. and other international companies to view Kenya as more than a domestic market, citing its strategic position within regional and continental trade arrangements.

“Do not look at Kenya simply as a market. Look at Kenya as your platform to a continent of 1.4 billion people,” Ruto said.

“Produce here. Innovate here. Build your regional headquarters here and serve Africa from here.”

Ruto said Kenya had already attracted major investments from U.S. companies, with American firms committing more than $600 million to new projects since the previous AmCham summit.

He cited Oracle’s selection of Kenya for its first public cloud region in Africa, Coca-Cola’s $175 million investment and Mars Wrigley’s $103 million production line launched at Athi River.

Ruto also said SC Johnson was establishing a new manufacturing plant to serve Kenya and other African markets.

He welcomed interest from Ford in exploring investment opportunities in Kenya, linking the potential investment to his administration’s efforts to create jobs and increase local value addition.