- Kenya’s state owned energy utility, KenGen, intends to make green energy sources available to miners.
- To benefit, they must place their facilities around the company’s geothermal plant.
- Kenya is the leading producer of thermal energy in Africa with 863 MW capacity.
With the government increasing access to clean, reliable and affordable electricity, from below 30% in 2013 to over 75% in 2020, more and more Kenyans are being connected to energy which is driving new innovations and business ideas.
“We have space and electricity is close, which contributes to stability,” said Peketsa Mwangi, KenGen’s director of geothermal development.
At nearly 2214.09 kWH, a transaction on the Bitcoin blockchain consumes as much energy as an average American household in 75 days. And, it dumps 1234.93kg of CO2, the equivalent of 2,737,036 transactions on the Visa network. The annual figures are even more alarming. According to Digiconomist data, Bitcoin’s energy consumption amounts to 204.5 TWh, the equivalent of a country like Thailand.
The national demand for electricity in Kenya recently hit a new peak demand of 2,051MW up from 2,036MW recorded in November 2021, pointing to an accelerated growth and recovery in demand which slowed down in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic.
The new peak demand was recorded on 12th May 2022 in the Daily System Operation and Dispatch Analysis Report by Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA). This growth was driven mainly by renewable energy sources with geothermal energy making the greatest contribution, giving further boost to Kenya’s climate action agenda.
Energy Principal Secretary Major General Dr Gordon Kihalangwa said that renewable energy currently accounts for 73% of all installed power generation capacity and 90% of the electricity used in country is from clean sources, which is key to improving people’s health – a necessary component in the Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
Speaking during the Kenya Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy Implementation Plan Validation Workshop which took place last month, Kihalangwa said that Kenya is on course to achieve a 100% use of clean energy by 2030. Read more
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
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