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Wind Power News: Kenya
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational effort to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
Transition to “clean energy” is hurting Indigenous communities
When Francisco Calí Tzay, the United Nations special rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous peoples, spoke at the 22nd United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, or UNPFII, last week, he listed clean energy projects as some of the most concerning threats to their rights. “I constantly receive information that Indigenous Peoples fear a new wave of green investments without recognition of their land tenure, management, and knowledge,” said Calí Tzay. His statements – and those made by other delegates – at . . . Complete story »
Wind farm row on as firm seeks more time over titles
The controversy surrounding the multibillion-shilling Lake Turkana Wind Power continues after the consortium returned to court seeking more time to regularise acquisition of 110,000 acres more to complete the project. The company has erected 365 turbines for driving electric generators on 40,000 acres but cordoned off 150,000 acres, thereby denying residents of Laisamis access to grazing land and open space to perform communal circumcision rites. The pastoralist community from Loiyangalani and Marsabit South in Laisamis lodged the suit in October . . . Complete story »
MPs probe Sh784m overpayment to Lake Turkana Wind Power
Parliament has opened investigations into the overpayment of Sh784 million to Lake Turkana Wind Power for the project in Marsabit County. The payments for the multi-billion-shillings project were made in four tranches from June to September, last year, but the firm’s directors yesterday told MPs they have waited for one year for bank account details to deposit the refund to the Kenya government. However, the MPs suspect collusion with Energy ministry and Kenya Power officials who could be pocketing interest . . . Complete story »
Tillatelse for 365 vindturbiner kjent ugyldig
[Kenyan court rules that a giant Danish wind farm in the area of indigenous peoples is illegal.] Kenyansk domstol slår fast at en gigantisk dansk vindpark i urfolks område er ulovlig. – Jeg syns det er veldig gledelig å høre at et slikt vindkraftanlegg og industriprosjekt er kjent ugyldig. Det er bra at domstolen påpeker at urfolkene i Kenya ikke har fått uttale seg i denne prosessen. Det sier sametingsråd Maja Kristine Jåma (NSR) til NRK. 28-åringen har gjennom hele . . . Complete story »
Tough lesson from wind farm land case
Last week, the High Court in Meru nullified the title deed for the land on which the Lake Turkana Wind Power project sits after establishing that due process was not followed in setting apart the 150,000 acres of community land. The company acquired a 33-year lease for the 150,000 acres to develop a 300MW wind power farm near Loyangalani. The project is on a footprint of 87.5 acres which comprises among others, 365 wind power turbines and a power station . . . Complete story »
Turkana wind project title deeds nullified in land row
The High Court in Meru has nullified title deeds for the land on which the Sh70 billion Lake Turkana Wind Power project sits, saying it was acquired irregularly. Judges Peter Muchoki Njoroge, Yuvinalis Angima and Grace Kemei said the Constitution was not followed when 150,000 acres of community land was allocated to Lake Turkana Wind Power Ltd. But the judges declined to cancel the title deeds, giving the Marsabit County government, the Attorney-General, the Chief Land Registrar and the National . . . Complete story »
Despite warnings, bankrupt firm was handed transmission line deal
The World Bank was the first major player in the deal to raise an alarm on the multibillion-shilling contract. But the Energy ministry officials remained adamant – the contract had to go on at all costs, despite the red flags. Minutes of the Kenya Power board dated May 2013 and a Cabinet memorandum on the project reveal that the World Bank, which was to provide a guarantee, or what is known as a Partial Risk Guarantee (PRG), was forced to . . . Complete story »
The Loiyangalani wind project that became a living nightmare
It started like all the good plans do: a dream. The plan? To transform Kenya’s energy economy, make its power generation environmentally sustainable and position Kenya as a continental leader in wind energy. Sounds cool, right? Wrong. The whole enterprise, from conception to execution, was crafted from the start to rob taxpayers of billions of shillings through phony contracts with the country’s power distributor. This is the short but sad story of the Lake Turkana Wind Power project, Kenya’s biggest . . . Complete story »
How the chase for cheaper power from Lake Turkana project turned elusive
In 2011 when whispers of a wind power project in Kenya began to get louder, the country was struggling with its generation mix. Reliance on expensive thermal energy was over 40 percent, geothermal was not as significant and hydro was too weather-reliant to guarantee steady supply. Five days before Christmas of 2014, a financial closure was reached and Kenya was on the path to hosting Africa’s largest wind power facility. The Sh70 billion project would not only inject clean power . . . Complete story »
How Kenya paid Sh7bn for ‘non-existent’ power
The government paid over Sh7 billion in penalties to investors behind Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP) generation plant for electricity that did not reach Kenyans, in what could be the latest mega scandal. This came up as MPs approved the Supplementary Budget III on June 30. The penalties, according to the MPs, are due to delayed completion of the Sh28.9 billion 430-kilometre high voltage power line from Lake Turkana Wind turbines to Suswa sub-station in Narok County, which is the . . . Complete story »
