Country Kenya Construction began 2016 expected | Status In development Commission date 2017 expected | |
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Location Garissa, Garissa District Owner(s) Kenya Rural Electrification Authority | ||
Garissa Power Station is a planned 55 megawatts (74,000 hp) solar power plant in Kenya.
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Location
The power station will be located in Garissa County about 20 kilometres (12 mi), north of the town of Garissa. This is approximately 385 kilometres (239 mi) by road, north-east of Nairobi, the country's capital and largest city.
Overview
The solar farm will sit on 85 hectares (210 acres) and consist of 200,200 solar panels and is expected to be the largest in East and Central Africa. It is expected to create about 1,000 jobs during the construction period. The power from this power station is enough to power about 625,000 homes.
The power station will be owned and operated by Kenya Rural Electrification Authority, a government of Kenya agency. The power generated will be sold to Kenya Power and Lighting for integration into the national grid.
Construction timeline, costs, and funding
China Jiangxi, a Chinese construction company was awarded the construction contract at a budgeted cost of KSh13.7 billion ($135.7 million), borrowed from Exim Bank of China. Construction is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2016 and is expected to last one year.