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Kenya Eyes Nuclear Power Generation And Strikes A Deal With China

by Felix Omondi
Kenya Eyes Nuclear Power Generation And Strikes A Deal With China

In line with the East African nation’s plans to install a nuclear power generator by 2025, Kenya has signed an agreement with China. This is according to a statement made by the Kenya Nuclear Electricity Board (KNEB) on September 10th.

According to KNEB, Kenya plans to have a nuclear power plant supplying 1,000MW of power by 2025. Once achieved, the country will further aim at improving nuclear energy generation to up to 4,000MW by the year 2033.

Kenya is indeed planning to make nuclear power generation “ a key component of the country’s energy” production. In the memorandum of understanding signed between Kenya and China, it was agreed that the latter will send nuclear power generation experts to Kenya. The experts will train and oversee capacity building in preparedness for nuclear power generation in Kenya.

KNEB further added that Kenya has already signed a cooperation agreement with South Korea and Slovakia to partner in its nuclear energy generation ambitions. As part of the already signed deal, more than 10 Kenyan students are already taking nuclear power engineering lessons in South Korea.

Over the recent years, Kenya has also been very aggressive in increasing its energy production from other sources like geothermal, wind and hydro power. The country has fast-growing populations and equally growing economic potential that would require increased energy supply if it is to sustain the growth.

Kenya has for long been heavily dependent on hydroelectric power generation, but with the unreliable rainfall attributed to climate change, this source of power is no longer as reliable as it used to be. The country’s geothermal power generation plants are found within the Great Rift Valley that divides the tectonic plates of the East African region.

According to stats by the World Bank, three in every 10 Kenyans have access to electricity, but this stats drops when one move into remote and poor rural areas.

Currently, South Africa is the only sub-Saharan Africa country that can boast of having an active nuclear energy generation plant.

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