Strathmore, Kenya Power ink first solar electricity sale deal

Strathmore University is now Kenya’s first grid-connected solar energy producer after the institution signed a deal to sell 0.25 megawatts (MW) to Kenya Power.

The private, Catholic Church-run university on Thursday signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Kenya Power to feed electricity to the national grid at a price of ¢12 (Sh12) per kilowatt hour.

Kenya Power also signed contracts to buy power from three other producers, namely Ol Ndanyat wind project (10MW), Kwale International Sugar Company (10 MW) and 0.57MW from Mt Kenya, a community-based organisation.

Strathmore’s solar power was connected to the grid in June 2014, but the university has not been earning any money from the supply because it was yet to conclude the PPA with the electricity retailer.

“We have been dispatching a good number of kWh to the grid without charging. The PPA is not retroactive so we start now,” said the university’s deputy vice chancellor (academic affairs) Izael Pereira Da Silva.

The electricity from Strathmore is enough to power about 1,000 households.

The incoming 20.82MW renewable energy is part of Kenya’s plan to add 5,000MW to the grid by end of 2017 mostly from green sources such as biomass, solar, hydro, wind and geothermal.

In March, VP Group - a Naivasha-based horticultural firm - became Kenya’s pioneer producer of biogas connected to the national grid after it started selling 2MW to Kenya Power.

Kenya is banking on such energy sources to halve the cost of electricity to Sh10 per kWh (¢10.45).