Published: March 24, 2015
Renewable energy in Kenya; a MENA boom for Suez Environnement; and airport deals for the EBRD.
Blowing in the wind
The ambitious renewable energy plans of Kenya’s government have piqued the interest of high-calibre investors.
In the Rift Valley, straddling the border between Kenya and Ethiopia, is Lake Turkana (pictured). With an area of 2,473 square miles, it is the largest permanent desert lake in the world and the largest alkaline lake, making its waters drinkable but not especially pleasant. The climate in the valley is hot year-round, it doesn’t rain for months on end and the wind blows strong, both on- and offshore, with sudden violent storms a common occurrence. It’s little wonder that this place was chosen as the site of Africa’s largest wind farm – the Lake Turkana Wind Power Plant, which reached financial close in January.
The project will product 310MW of power, equivalent to about 20% of Kenya’s current installed capacity, and its 365 individual turbines will occupy 40,000 acres of land. The project attracted €625mn (US$750mn) of financing – 70% senior debt, 10% mezzanine debt and a 20% equity stake – from a group of regional and international financiers including Standard Bank, Nedbank, the African Development Bank, Norfund, the European Investment Bank, the Netherlands Development Finance Company, Proparco, the East African Development Bank, PTA Bank, EKF, Trodos and DEG.
The project took eight years to develop, partly because