Page 11 - AfrElec Week 16 2022

AfrElec RENEWABLES AfrElec

AfDB withdraws funding

for Kenya’s 35-MW Sosian

geothermal plant

KENYA THE African Development Bank (AfDB) has evacuate 105 MW of electricity from the three
withdrawn funding for Kenya’s 35-MW geother- power plants.
mal power plant at Menengai in Nakuru over its “The delays have primarily been due to nego-
ownership by Baringo Senator Gideon Moi. tiation of finance documents between the lend-
The AfDB has demanded a change of own- ers and sponsor, closure of certain bankability
ership before it can offer funding to build the issues with the government agencies and change
35-MW Sosian Menengai Geothermal Power in the sponsor of the project,” a source told Busi-
Facility in Nakuru County as an independent ness Daily.
power producer (IPP), Business Daily reports. “The bank [AfDB] is currently engaged on
Moi is the son of Kenya’s late President Daniel the Quantum Power East Africa (QPEA) project
Arap Moi and the family has vast business inter- only. It has previously been engaged on Sosian
ests. The funding hitch emerged after revelations project as well but it requires a change in share-
he had bought back a majority stake in Sosian holding before it can engage further.”
from steel and cement tycoon Narendra Raval, The source indicated that the AfDB had
who sold it after incessant delays in building of pushed for ownership changes in QPEA, lead-
power plants. ing to British firm Globeleq to acquire a majority
Sosian was one of the three firms awarded stake in the company in February 2021. Quan-
a tender by state-owned Geothermal Develop- tum and NYSE-listed Ormat Technologies are
ment Corporation (GDC) through competitive required to build two other power plants at
bidding to install and operate a 35-MW geo- Menengai.
thermal modular power plant in for 25 years on It is still unclear why AfDB is not keen to
a build-own-operate (BOO) basis. partner with wealthy Moi family. Kenya has
GDC took upfront risk costs by building a turned to geothermal steam as clean renewable
steam gathering system, while the Kenya Elec- source of energy to reduce cost of electricity for
tricity Transmission Co. (KETRACO) set a consumers.™
substation and 132-kV transmission line to

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