- Heavy power consuming industries of Kenya are successfully shifting to solar power systems seeking reliable and cheaper supply.
- Reliable supply and reduced operational costs have attracted several companies, universities and factories to solar photovoltaic (PV) grid-tied systems for power supply.
Heavy power consuming industries of Kenya are successfully shifting to solar power systems seeking reliable and cheaper supply. Reliable supply and reduced operational costs have attracted several companies, universities and factories to solar photovoltaic (PV) grid-tied systems for power supply. Some of the big power consumers such as Africa Logistics Properties (ALP), Mombasa International Airport, the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (Icipe) have already commissioned solar power units on their properties.
Moi International Airport in Mombasa‘s 500 KW solar PV system underway is expected to generate 820,000 kWh per year and offset 1,300 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually. Nairobi’s Garden City Mall’s solar carport to generate 1,256-megawatt hours annually from the 3,300 solar panels installed on the topmost car park shade, estimates that it would cut power bills by about Sh31.6 million annually. The other major companies and institutions that have installed or in the process of shifting to solar power systems include London Distillers Ltd, Williamson Tea, Kenyatta University, Strathmore University, Kapa Oil Refineries, etc.
Not only, industries, households are turning to clean energy like Solar. Official data released last year showed that some 2.3 million households also used solar for lighting, representing about 19.3 per cent of the total number of homes. The 2019 Official statistics reported solar lighting uptake in homes at 19.3 percent while rural areas recorded above 29.9 percent, as against the rural national grid connections that stood at 26 percent.
The flip side of this development is that it has drained the revenues of electricity distributor Kenya Power. The utility firm said in its annual report that some of its industrial customers — who contribute about 54.8 percent of its sales revenues — are gradually shifting to own-generated solar power, further plunging its finances.
The company further revealed that the drop in demand growth was further aggravated due to grid defection by the industrial category as decentralised renewable energy options are becoming more available and cheaper
Power generation crossed a record one billion kilowatt-hours in October — adding financial pressure on the distributor, which is already paying for huge volumes of idle electricity.it is estimated that the latest growth in demand will be around approximately 2.3 percent in 2020, compared to the 10-year average of 5.9 per cent.
