Energy Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi has laid bare the scale of Kenya’s energy challenge: the national grid must add at least 100MW of new power every single year just to keep pace with demand.

Speaking as he unveiled the ministry’s latest power generation roadmap, Wandayi framed the rising demand not as a crisis, but as a "signal of an economy on the move." With industrial expansion and rapid urbanization driving consumption, the days of power surplus are officially over. The race is now on to tap into the Rift Valley’s geothermal reservoirs before the grid buckles.

The Green Solution

The Ministry has identified geothermal energy as the baseload workhorse of the future. "We are working around the clock," Wandayi stated, referencing the accelerated construction of Olkaria VII. The strategy is two-fold:

• Geothermal Expansion: Bringing an extra 63MW online by September 2026 from rehabilitated plants like Olkaria I.
• Storage is Key: For the first time, Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) are central to the plan. The government aims to deploy 250MW of battery storage by late 2026 to stabilize the grid and store solar/wind energy for peak evening hours.

"We must ensure that demand does not outstrip supply," the CS warned. With the cost of the new Olkaria project pegged at KSh 15.6 billion, the government is actively seeking financiers. The message to investors is clear: Kenya is open for business, but it needs the power to run it.