Olkaria I Geothermal Power Station

Location

The facility is located in the Hell's Gate National Park along with its sister stations, Olkaria II and Olkaria III. This location lies in Olkaria, in Nakuru County, on the eastern edge of the Eastern Rift Valley, approximately 40 km, by road, southwest of Naivasha, the nearest large town.{{google maps| url=https://www.google.com/search?q=%22Distance+between+Naivasha+Town%2C+Naivasha%2C+Nakuru+County%2C+Kenya+and+Olkaria%2C+Nakuru+County%2C+Kenya%22&oq=%22Distance+between+Naivasha+Town%2C+Naivasha%2C+Nakuru+County%2C+Kenya+and+Olkaria%2C+Nakuru+County%2C+Kenya%22&aqs=chrome..69i57.1892j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 |title=Travel Distance Between Naivasha Town, Nakuru County, Kenya and Olkaria, Nakuru County, Kenya | access-date=18 July 2022}} Olkaria is approximately 121 km, by road, northwest of Nairobi.{{google maps| url=https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Olkaria+V+Geothermal+Power+Station,+38VF%2B578,+Sulmac+Village,+Kenya/Nairobi,+Kenya/@-1.009463,36.3044511,10z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x18293699fda3c66d:0x2b67f3f1e8434549!2m2!1d36.3232014!2d-0.9070812!1m5!1m1!1s0x182f1172d84d49a7:0xf7cf0254b297924c!2m2!1d36.8219462!2d-1.2920659!3e0 |title=Travel Distance Between Nairobi Central, Nairobi County, Kenya and Olkaria, Nakuru County, Kenya |access-date=18 July 2022}}

Overview

Olkaria I Geothermal Power Station is one in a series of six geothermal power stations, clustered in the Olkaria area in Nakuru County. Four of the stations Olkaria I, Olkaria II, Olkaria III and Olkaria IV were operational, as of September 2017. As of 2020, the entire Olkaria complex had an installed capacity of 810.3 MW{{cite web |work=Business Daily Africa | url=https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/corporate/industry/kengen-starts-new-round-of-steam-wells-drilling--1997752 | title=KenGen starts new round of steam wells' drilling | date=27 December 2011 |author=David Herbling |access-date=18 July 2022 |location=Nairobi, Kenya}}{{cite web| url=https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/business/Geothermal-plant-adds-280MW-to-Kenya-grid/-/2560/2554960/-/15l6rvf/-/index.html | title=Geothermal plant adds 280MW to Kenya grid |date=13 December 2014 |access-date=26 September 2017 | location=Nairobi | work=The EastAfrican |author=The EastAfrican}} Olkaria V was synchronised to the grid in 2019. and Olkaria VI is planned for 2021.{{cite web| work=Renewable Energy World | url=http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/articles/2017/01/kengen-plans-olkaria-v-geothermal-project.html |title=KenGen Plans Olkaria V Geothermal Project | date=10 January 2017 | access-date=26 September 2017 |author=Renewable Energy World}}

History

The Olkaria I Power Station first started operation in 1981 running one Mitsubishi turbine with a generation capacity of 15 MW. In 1982 and 1985, two more turbines identical to the first were commissioned at the facility, bringing the total generation capacity to 45 MW. As of January 2015 unit 4 and 5 with a combined installed capacity of 140 Megawatts were inaugurated. This brings the total installed capacity of Olkaria I to 185 Megawatts.

In March 2016, the government of Kenya borrowed KSh9.53 billion (US$95 million), from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to refurbish turbines 1, 2 and 3 at Olkaria I. The works includes increasing the combined capacity of the three turbines from 45 MW to 50.7 MW. The rehabilitation and upgrade works are expected to last until 2021. This will increase capacity at this power station from 185 MW to 190.7 MW.

In December 2018, Kenya Electricity Generating Company broke ground for the construction of Unit 6 of Olkaria I Geothermal Power Station, with capacity of 83 megawatts. Completion of this unit was expected in 2021, bringing total capacity at this geothermal station to 268.3 MW.{{cite web|url=https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/news/KenGen-set-to-break-ground-for-geothermal-plant/539546-4879620-x0obayz/index.html |title=KenGen set to break ground for geothermal plant today |newspaper=Business Daily Africa | date=3 December 2018 |access-date=3 December 2018 |author=Sam Kiplagat |location=Nairobi}} Unit 6 of Olkaria I, was commercially commissioned in July 2022.

Ownership

Olkaria I Power Station is owned by KenGen, a Nairobi Stock Exchange - listed company, in which the government of Kenya maintains a 70 percent shareholding, the remaining 30 percent being held by institutional and private investors.{{cite web| url=http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/corporate/KenGen-sells-stake-South-Africans/539550-3825702-11qvgcw/index.html |title=KenGen sells five per cent stake to South Africans for Sh2.3 billion |date=23 February 2017 | accessdate=26 September 2017 |first=Victor | last=Juma |location=Nairobi| newspaper=Business Daily Africa}}

References

References

1. Jean Marie Takouleu. (18 July 2022). "Kenya: Unit 6 of the Olkaria I geothermal power plant is operational". Afrik21.africa.
2. Sonal Patel. (12 January 2015). "Olkaria Geothermal Expansion Project, Rift Valley Province, Kenya". Power Magazine.
3. "KenGen's latest geothermal plant adds 79 MW to grid".
4. KenGen. (2017). "Profile of Olkaria I Geothermal Power Station". [[Kenya Electricity Generating Company]] (KenGen).
5. Administrator. (19 February 2015). "President Paul Kagame Inaugurates Olkaria I Units 4 & 5". Geosteam Kenya.
6. Otuki, Neville. (16 March 2018). "Japan pumps Sh9.53bn into Kenya's oldest geothermal plant". [[Business Daily Africa]].