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KenGen moves 150 families from Olkaria steam fields

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A family moves into its new house in Kedong. KenGen has moved 150 families from the geothermal well exploration fields in Olkaria ending a decade-long struggle to create room for expansion of the multi-billion project. PHOTO | BD CORRESPONDENT

Electricity generator, KenGen, has moved 150 families from the geothermal well exploration fields in Olkaria ending a decade-long struggle to create room for expansion of the multi-billion project.

Each family has been given a new two-bedroom house with a kitchen and a living room on a one acre plot under the Resettlement Action Plan partly funded by the World Bank and KenGen to a tune of Sh5 billion.

Double blessing

The furnished houses come as double blessing to families who are currently living in makeshift houses (manyattas) which lack electricity and piped water.

Olkaria Geothermal Plant manager Cyrus Kirongothi said that KenGen would also build three churches, a school and a dispensary for the relocated households.

“We wanted to pave the way for geothermal exploration in the area and the place where the families lived had huge geothermal reservoirs,” Mr Kirongothi said during the launch of the relocation.

KenGen had acquired 1,700 acres in Kedong farm to resettle the families.

Among the villages that benefited from the project were Olosinyat, Olonmgonot, Cultural Centre and Olomaiyana Ndogo.

The relocation paves the way for expansion of geothermal plants that the State has been banking on to pull down electricity tariffs. 

Last month, the firm connected 140 megawatts to the national grid and announced plans to connect another 140MW by end of this year.

The firm has also resorted to mobile wellhead plants, which are faster to deploy, to accelerate its geothermal power production.

The plants are expected to generate an additional 70MW, bringing the total additional output from Olkaria to 350MW.