The United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) has awarded the Kenya Craftskills Energy International Limited a grant to develop a 50-megawatt wind power plant with an integrated battery storage in Kajiado, Kenya.
Actis, will work together with craftskills energy international limited while Delphos International which is another US firm, will execute the study. Actis is a which is a leading US investor firm in growth market across Africa, Latin America and Asia,
USTDA Acting Director Thomas R. Hardy said, “ The project has both the structure and the smarts to succeed.” He further complimented craftskills on the quality partners that they have on board and believes that the US companies will be very competitive in the supply of Kajiado project major components.
The U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Kyle McCarter said the US Embassy was proud to continue its support for the project. He added that the embassy is committed to helping Kenyan partners gain access to US government resources that will help them grow with the expertise from the American companies.
The project will find a solution for battery energy storage, which will enhance the capacity of the power plant. The results are anticipated to be more power to the Kenyan consumers at a competitive price.
The project is in support of Power Africa and Electrify Africa Act, which aims at supporting private sector involvement in Africa’s energy sector.
In December 2018, Power Africa partner Actis worked with the Kenyan company craftskills wind energy international limited and acquired Kipeto Energy bringing it to a financial close. Actis is the majority shareholder (88%) and craftskills (12%) is the minority shareholder.
Kipeto energy located in Kajiado County, it is the second-largest wind farm, which is anticipated to add 100 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy to Kenya’s national grid. It is also expected to contribute to the Government of Kenya’s goal to provide the Kenyan citizens with access to electricity by 2022 under the recently released Kenya National Strategy (KNES) and Vision 2030.
Power Africa has continued to drive the kind of transmission projects Kenya and its potential power trading partners across the continent will need in the future.
