Kenya digs in for electricity generation

June 19, 2025

Dear subscriber, this is a prototype. Please help us with feedback and tips. Just press reply.

Kenya's state-owned electricity generator, KenGen, has announced that its 63 MW Olkaria 1 geothermal plant is 70% complete, with the first turbine expected to be operational by June 2026. This comes at a time when Kenya is experiencing load shedding due to increased electricity demand and a lack of baseload power to meet the growing peak demand.

  • Kenya has sought electricity imports from Ethiopia to meet its growing demand, with peak demand rising by more than 350 MW in the last four years. It currently imports 200 MW and plans to double this amount, with negotiations currently ongoing.

  • However, Kenya has abundant renewable energy resources. Geothermal energy alone could meet its current demand if harnessed fully. Currently, the 940 MW installed capacity is only about a tenth of its potential.

  • Our take: Kenya needs to focus more on generating power from reliable sources like geothermal, which are affordable and available in plenty… Read more (2 min)

African renewables sector sees job boom

The Renewables Rising job tracker for the top ten energy companies shows they collectively hired 286 new staff in the past year, bringing their total combined workforce to 1,626 employees. This data is based on analyses of senior staff profiles on LinkedIn. The overall African renewables market saw 388 open roles over the last month.

  • New roles are predominantly based in South Africa, which accounted for almost half of the open jobs. Major companies operating in the country, like Mulilo Energy, Scatec, and EDF Renewables, dominated hiring.

  • The top ten companies we track in detail added 26 new staff members in June, 20 fewer than May hires. Norway-based energy developer Scatec continued its dominance, accounting for half the new hires for the third consecutive month.

  • Our take: African countries must prioritise training their workforce in emerging areas like battery energy storage… Read more (2 min)

Renewable technology intermittency, particularly solar and wind, is driving the growth of battery energy storage systems (BESS) across the continent. The Renewables Rising projects database tracks at least 5,800 MWh of BESS projects under development. This week’s job listing features over 110 positions with key listings in battery energy storage.

  • Companies hiring for BESS-related roles are mainly in South Africa. These include Scatec ASA, EDF Renewables, Sungrow Southern Africa, among others.

  • We also feature a significant number of finance and accounting roles like Senior Accountant, Project Finance Officer, Financial Manager, Financial Accountant, etc. This is due to the capital-intensive nature of renewable energy projects 

  • The full list of jobs can be accessed here… (2 min)

Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and the International Solar Alliance partner  to accelerate progress in energy transition in developing countries

 

Events

🗓️ Attend the International Conference on Renewable Energy in Power Systems (Jun 21)

🗓️ Sign up for a webinar on wind energy in Africa (Jun 26)

🗓️ Learn about small-scale embedded generation application platforms (Jun 26)

Various 

💸 South African AI startup nabs $1.8m to disrupt energy sector

💡 AMEA Power chooses DNV for 1,000 MW Abydos solar-storage project

⚡ CLASP & GEAPP inject $6.1m to boost energy-efficient appliances in Africa

🔌 Localisation Support Fund invites  bids for 5-10 GWh LFP Facility

Seen on LinkedIn 

Andrew Herscowitz, CEO of the Mission 300 Accelerator, says, “Energy is no longer merely a technical or economic input. It is a geopolitical force.”