According to Kenyan Wallstreet, Meru County in Kenya, is set to be the home of Africa’s first large scale hybrid battery, solar and wind renewable energy system.
The project is coming after the Kenya Investment Authority and the county government signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Eurus Energy and Windlab to build the energy facility.
The energy project is expected to provide 80MW (megawatts) of clean energy via its over 40,000 solar panels and 20 wind turbines.
The project which is called the “Meru County Energy Park”, will bring 15.52 billion Kenyan Shillings ($150 million) into the county.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe and Cabinet Secretary (CA) Monica Juma, both signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the project, which will begin in earnest by 2021.
While speaking at the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Windlab Global; Roger Price, expressed the company’s anticipation of the project.
The Chief Executive Officer stated that, “We are excited to bring world-leading innovation in the renewable energy sector and project development expertise to Meru County.”
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is expected to first enhance the achievement of the midterm agenda of the Big Four while the Meru Energy Park itself, will promote sustainable energy production.
The Chief Executive Officer of KenInvest noted that, “…promotion of predictable and sustainable renewable energy is vital to guarantee the achievement of the Manufacturing Pillar. As a result, we welcome Windlab and Eurus Energy to invest in Meru. We shall offer the partners all the support to deliver the project.”
The hybrid energy project is also the flagship project of the Meru County Investment development Corporation’s (MCIDC) flagship project.
Among its numerous benefits will be the creation of reliable energy for over 200,000 homes.
While individuals living in Meru County, will benefit greatly from the implementation of the project, the local county government will also own part of the project when it becomes fully operational and the implementation of the partnership between the public and private sectors for the project, will include a transfer of knowledge, as well as more efforts towards capacity building.
The project is a huge win for Kenya after the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) 7 event.
Days ago, the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), also resulted in a partnership between Astral Aerial and Yamaha. The partnership, is aimed towards the promotion of drone technologies in Kenya.
