Kenya Breweries Limited (KBL) plans to pump Sh22 billion into modernising its Nairobi and Kisumu production lines on the way to fully going green.
Through the multibillion-shilling project, the brewer has unveiled an elaborate investment plan to keep up with current environmental standards.
KBL Managing Director John Musunga said the plan includes installation of solar energy at all their sites cutting reliance on erratic Kenya Power #ticker:KPLC and kick off a journey towards becoming an independent power producer in the next nine years.
“This is already being partly implemented in our Kisumu plant, with 10 percent of our current electricity requirements being met by renewable energy from solar. We are committed to sourcing 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030 in all of our facilities,” he said in their annual sustainability report released on Friday.
KBL plans to generate at least 9.3 megawatts at its Ruaraka plant and 2.4 megawatts from solar power in Kisumu.
The money will also finance the production of biofuels, which will reduce their carbon emissions by 95 percent (about 42,000 tonnes of carbon a year) and create over 900 direct and indirect jobs particularly with local farmers providing the biomass fuel.
The investment to be rolled out at the beginning of next year, noted Mr Musunga, represents the single-largest climate action investment by KBL parent firm Diageo across Sub-Saharan Africa.
Water treatment
KBL says it has also invested in a water treatment facility that enables the company to treat three million litres of water a day before releasing it into the Nairobi River.
In the Kisumu plant, KBL has invested Sh4 billion in a water recovery plant that treats 50 percent of wastewater. The treated water is reused at the refurbished Senator Keg plant, cutting down on reliance on freshwater from the nearby Lake Victoria.
Its conservation efforts have seen KBL plant more than 1.3 million trees across the country.
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