Is catching the tail end of a discussion on energy in Kenya at iHub. Apparently currently to sell your surplus solar energy back to the grid, you have to sign a Power Purchase Agreement with Kenya Power Limited which is next to impossible to obtain. Hope is in the upcoming 2025 Kenya Energy Bill which has laws around net metering.
{Note Germanys net metering system charges users x for power and pays them 2x for the power they generate. Kenya has 19 times less solar power installed than Germanys 38 GW. Why is that? Awareness- people think of solar only in terms of lanterns and mobile charges not solar on a large scale. The cost of money is high here. Plus there has to big capacity building. It is interesting to see that the government is proposing nuclear power to close the gap but not focusing enough on solar (I have to check this out).}
Note this is all fairly new as a monopoloy existed before ( i dont know what the case is now. I thought it was still a monopoly) and one could only sell energy to the grid if ones system was greater than 40kW. Interestingly it was a UNDP project in the 90's that helped changed policy. UNDP tied up with another power supplier to build an 18kW hydroelectric scheme that powered a small shopping center. The result of this project was partly instrumental in shaping policy.
Another instance of policy following a project, is when the Spanish government gifted Kenya a 3.5 MW wind turbine on the top of Ngong hill. The project produced the energy it was guaranteed to produce in 1.5 years, instead of the said 2 years. This made the government interested in independent projects such as this. However, most project managers need the government to sign a 'sovereignty' clause: which states that in the event of a civil war/terrorist attack of the project, the government will reimburse the constructors. The government has been shying away from doing this. Without this, banks refuse to provide loans, and projects cannot be developed.
UNEP is currently pushing for a FiT for solar. UNEP produces more solar energy than it needs. It is now putting excess energy into the grid for free. It is pushing for the government to implement FiTs. In the new Energy Bill, this will range form 8.5cents/kWh to 20 cents/kWh (for decentralized renewables). Note the Mumias Sugar Industry actually had a geothermal(?) renewable project up and running which the government gave 6 cents/kWh. Under this new act the government is supposed to give them 12 cents/kWh. Mumias asked for this price. Instead the government slapped them with a 2 million KSh bill, for failing to comply with contractual terms. It refused to pay Mumias the 12 cents/kWh, and Mumias boycotted their original contract and is not providing the government with any energy.
For solar water heating, there is an Energy Efficiency act that requires companies to conduct energy audits.
There is a push that in the new building code there will be mandatory water harvesting and design buildings according to local microclimate as well as use local materials. The current building code doesnt all anything apart from stone. This is because the colonial master buidling codes were used.
{Note Germanys net metering system charges users x for power and pays them 2x for the power they generate. Kenya has 19 times less solar power installed than Germanys 38 GW. Why is that? Awareness- people think of solar only in terms of lanterns and mobile charges not solar on a large scale. The cost of money is high here. Plus there has to big capacity building. It is interesting to see that the government is proposing nuclear power to close the gap but not focusing enough on solar (I have to check this out).}
Note this is all fairly new as a monopoloy existed before ( i dont know what the case is now. I thought it was still a monopoly) and one could only sell energy to the grid if ones system was greater than 40kW. Interestingly it was a UNDP project in the 90's that helped changed policy. UNDP tied up with another power supplier to build an 18kW hydroelectric scheme that powered a small shopping center. The result of this project was partly instrumental in shaping policy.
Another instance of policy following a project, is when the Spanish government gifted Kenya a 3.5 MW wind turbine on the top of Ngong hill. The project produced the energy it was guaranteed to produce in 1.5 years, instead of the said 2 years. This made the government interested in independent projects such as this. However, most project managers need the government to sign a 'sovereignty' clause: which states that in the event of a civil war/terrorist attack of the project, the government will reimburse the constructors. The government has been shying away from doing this. Without this, banks refuse to provide loans, and projects cannot be developed.
UNEP is currently pushing for a FiT for solar. UNEP produces more solar energy than it needs. It is now putting excess energy into the grid for free. It is pushing for the government to implement FiTs. In the new Energy Bill, this will range form 8.5cents/kWh to 20 cents/kWh (for decentralized renewables). Note the Mumias Sugar Industry actually had a geothermal(?) renewable project up and running which the government gave 6 cents/kWh. Under this new act the government is supposed to give them 12 cents/kWh. Mumias asked for this price. Instead the government slapped them with a 2 million KSh bill, for failing to comply with contractual terms. It refused to pay Mumias the 12 cents/kWh, and Mumias boycotted their original contract and is not providing the government with any energy.
For solar water heating, there is an Energy Efficiency act that requires companies to conduct energy audits.
There is a push that in the new building code there will be mandatory water harvesting and design buildings according to local microclimate as well as use local materials. The current building code doesnt all anything apart from stone. This is because the colonial master buidling codes were used.
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