In the final quarter of 2019, the Kenyan Electricity Generating Company PLC (KenGen) hosted a variety of delegates from the international community.
Among those hosted at the KenGen headquarters include the Ethiopian Ambassador to Kenya, the High Commissioner of Saint Kitts and Nevis to Kenya and a delegation from the European Investment Bank (EIB) led by its Vice- President Ambroise Fayolle.
The various meetings between KenGen officials and the delegates from the international community shows how the company is growing its importance and reverence in the global geothermal energy production field.
Ethiopian Ambassador to Kenya with the KenGen Managing Director at a Meeting held on November 29,2020
On November 29,2020 KenGen successfully hosted the Ethiopian Ambassador to Kenya, H.E Meles Alem Tikea at their headquarters based in Nairobi, Kenya. Among the key topics discussed in the closed door meeting were on how KenGen were planning to implement two major geothermal generation projects that it was planning to embark on in Ethiopia.
Details of the projects are that in October 2019, the KenGen won a contract to drill several geothermal wells for Tulu Moye Geothermal Operations PLC. This was in addition to an earlier tender it had won earlier on in February, 2019 where the company had entered into a contract with the Ethiopian Electric Company. Intricacies of the contract between KenGen and EEC would require the former to drill geothermal wells in the rich geothermal rift valley region of Ethiopia. These two projects are a proof KenGen's strategic efforts to offer consultancy to countries within the East and Central Africa region are beginning to bear fruits.
With the two projects timelines being at the center of the talks. H.E Meles Alem Tikea remarked that the Government of Ethiopia was keen on achieving its power generation targets and therefore they were fully committed in their collaboration with KenGen towards supporting the African continent in the road to universal access to electricity and in line with SDG goal of producing affordable and clean energy.
KenGen's Managing Director, Rebecca Miano reassured the Ambassador that the projects in Ethiopia came at a time when KenGen's diversification strategy had taken off in earnest. She further asserted that KenGen had drilled more than 300 geothermal wells on top of investing in experts with considerable experience in geothermal development hence the project was in no doubts at safe hands.
Among other dignitaries hosted by KenGen include H.E High Commissioner of Saint Kitts & Nevis to Kenya, Mrs Verna Mills. The commissioner was taken on an expedition by a team of KenGen officials whereby she was shown the KenGen Olkaria Spa Project. The EIB team also took an excursion to the Olkaria project to see how inter alia how efficient the Olkaria projects have been.
Mrs Verna Mills 2nd from right during a tour at Olkaria
