Kenya plans Africa’s first utility-scale wind turbines

The Lake Turkana Wind Power consortium will provide 300 MW of wind power to Kenya’s national electricity grid by July 2012.

Source: Evwind.es

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Kenya's 300 MW Lake Turkana wind power project, Africa's first utility-scale wind turbines, will enter construction by the end of the year, according to the wind farm developer.

Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP) consortium is poised to provide 300 MW of clean power to Kenya's national electricity grid by taking advantage of a unique wind resource in Northwest Kenya near Lake Turkana. Using the latest wind turbine technology, LTWP can provide power to satisfy up to 30% of Kenya's current total installed power.

According to their website, LTWP will construct a wind farm consisting of 353 wind turbines, each with a capacity of 850 kW. The total foreseen power generated by the initial phase of this wind farm is expected to add 30% or more to the total existing installed capacity available in Kenya. Wind-turbine technology has seen recent rapid improvement with the development of wind turbines such as the Vestas V52, the design standard selected by LTWP.

Kenya's 300 MW Lake Turkana wind energy project construction will start by December, following the issue by the government of a letter of support.

LTWP is a subsidiary of KP&P, a firm from the Netherlands that sets up wind farm projects. “We now look to breaking ground by December, to having the initial 50 MW running on the national grid by September 2013, and to reach full capacity by mid-2014,” LTWP Chairman Carlo Van Wageningen said at the signing of the government letter of support.

The 300 MW will be transmitted to the national grid through a 428 km overhead line to the state-run Kenya Power and Lighting Company. The Kenyan government will earn about $20 million in carbon credit earnings.