Page 15 - AfrElec Week 02 2023

AfrElec PERFORMANCE AfrElec

Kenya’s capacity reaches 3,074MW

KENYA KENYA’S installed capacity reached the Cedate Solar power plant.
3074.34MW as of June 2022, up from 2,972MW “The installed capacity increased by
the previous year, following the operationaliza- 102.34MW from 2,972MW as of June 2021 to
tion of about five power plants, the Energy and 3,074MW as of June 2022. Geothermal and solar
Petroleum Regulatory Authority (Epra) has said. generation increased by 86MW and 120MW,
The East African country boosted its electric- respectively,” an Epra report indicated.
ity capacity by adding 102.34MW to its installed Data from Epra also show that the state-
capacity for electricity generation from four owned power utility Kenya Power added 703,331
plants supplying the national grid in 2021/22. customers to the national grid in the last finan-
The region’s largest economy recorded cial year, the highest addition in a single year
electricity peak demand at 2,057MW on June since June 2017 when 1.3mn customers joined
14 last year from 1,993.63MW a year earlier, the national grid.
which signalled a steady rise of economic activ- The country has also signed a number of
ity after eased coronavirus pandemic-induced deals with neighbours such as Uganda and Ethi-
restrictions. opia for the importation power, the latter under
According to Epra, the added plants to the a 27-year power-sharing deal with Ethiopia in
grid include 86MW from the Olkaria 1 unit which Kenya Power started importing electricity
6, the 40MW Selenkei Solar plant, the 40MW at lower tariffs.™
Malindi Solar plant, and another 40MW from

South Korea’s Hanwha Qcells to

invest $2.5bn in solar plant in US

SOUTH KOREA SOUTH Korea’s solar energy company Hanwha Silicon’s plant in Moses Lake, Washington State.
Qcells will invest $2.5bn in the US supply chain, In 2022, Hanwha bought 21% of REC, a Norwe-
building a manufacturing complex in Georgia gian firm.
that may employ as many as 2,500. “We are seeking to further expand our
The plant will manufacture solar components low-carbon solar investments as we lead the
such as silicon ingots, wafers and cells, as well as industry towards fully American-made clean
whole panels. energy solutions,” said Qcells CEO Justin Lee.
It is the largest solar investment in US history. “As demand for clean energy continues to
Qcells will be taking advantage of President grow nationally, we’re ready to put thousands
Joe Biden’s $300bn Inflation Reduction Act of people to work creating fully American made
(IRA), which gives generous manufacturing and sustainable solar solutions, from raw mate-
tax credits to renewable energy components rial to finished panels,” he added.
made in America. Most solar components are President Joe Biden said that Qcells’ invest-
currently made in China or by Chinese firms in ment “will bring back our supply chains so we
Southeast Asia. aren’t reliant on other countries, lower the cost
Qcells said it will expand its existing solar of clean energy and help us combat the climate
panel factory in Dalton, Georgia, the largest crisis. And, it will ensure that we manufacture
manufacturer of solar panels in the Western cutting-edge, solar technology here at home. It’s
Hemisphere, and open a second facility in Cart- a win for workers, consumers, and our climate.”
ersville, Georgia. Qcells had launched its first solar panel man-
The Dalton plant will be expanded this year ufacturing plant in Georgia in 2019, quickly
to have a capacity of 5.1 GW a year, up from 2 becoming the largest US producer. By year-end
GW a year to 5.1 GW. Production will begin in 2022, it was producing 12,000 panels daily. The
Cartersville in 2024, said Qcells. new facility will increase its capacity to 60,000
Qcells will use polysilicon made at REC panels per day, reported the New York Times.™

Week 02 11•January•2023 www. NEWSBASE .com P15