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Kenya will this month commission it first wind energy to the national grid. The news yesterday come at time when the country had closed one of the dams supplying electricity to the country while the second Hydro electric power supply source is to be closed in the next few days as the water is at its lowest level.
The timing of the commissioning of the wind power is not of interest to me. What interests me is the country's long term plan. Certainly the Wind energy project was under way even before the drought problems began. This mean KenGen which the Kenyan Version of TANESCO in Tanzania has plans already for alternative energy.
We all know how friendly wind energy is to the environment at the same time making wonders to looming power cuts. While Power shortages in Tanzania has become the order of the day life, TANESCO need to emulate KenGen and take steps to invest on such cheap source which are obviously rainfall independent. Areas like Same around Makanya and where warnings to driver of Strong winds which I believe have enough wind to generate profitable power and this area could be a the second gold mine and a vital part of our national economy and where we don't need investor to come and tell us what to do. while Kenya is planning to establish more sites around L. Victoria we should the ones to maximize the extensive coastal belt and harness this energy to supplement our ever aging machines and avoid the second Richmond saga since drought will always come in the near future.
1 comment:
Kenya has gone one step ahead of us. I believe we'll soon follow. There is a similar project likely to start in Singida this year. Assessments of climate change and variability in several parts of the country had indicated perceived increase in winds. We need to consider this as an opportunity vs disaster and harness this potential to reduce the current darkness level. Today, only 10% of Tanzanians can access electric power, most of them are urban dwellers. Wind and solar energy can therefore come to our rescue as alternative energy.
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