Kenya Electricity Generating Company PLC (KenGen) has kicked-off the construction of a Research and Development (R&D) Centre at Tana Power Station located in Murang’a County, in a move to boost innovation in the company.
The construction of the Centre, which will also double up as an archive for the Company, is expected to take 18 months to completion, making KenGen one of the first public sector entities in Kenya to establish such a facility.
Speaking during the foundation stone laying ceremony, KenGen Managing Director and CEO Rebecca Miano said the project which was five weeks ahead of its implementation plan is part of KenGen’s overall Diversification Strategy and would go a long way in helping the NSE-listed firm to identify and implement new revenue streams much faster.
“With this facility, KenGen employees now have a place to carry out trials, tests, experiments and pilot new business in the context of our diversification strategy,” said Miano.
She added that the facility would conceive ideas that will change the company’s business and the energy sector for good.
At the same time, the MD said the company had put in place measures to ensure that the employees and contractors working on the project were safe and observing the laid-down protocols for COVID-19.
The KenGen CEO thanked the local community for continuous support over the years noting that the project had so far benefited the local community through provision of employment for skilled, and semi-skilled workforce.
The Contractor assigned to the project has so far engaged a total of 92 short term contract staff, comprising 81 male and 11 female from the local community.
As a one-of-a-kind innovation hub, Ms Miano noted that the facility would provide locally sourced technological solutions for electricity generation, further augmenting KenGen’s endeavors to increase generation capacity and diversify its project portfolio.
KenGen is the leading electricity generation company in Eastern Africa region with an installed generation capacity market share of more than 60percent.
The company’s primary business is to provide safe, reliable, and competitively priced electric energy for the country in an environmentally friendly and sustainable manner while creating value for its stakeholders.
Currently, KenGen PLC has an installed generation capacity of 1,818MW, of which over 86 percent is drawn from green sources, namely: Hydro (826MW), Geothermal (713MW), Thermal (253MW), and Wind (26MW).
By Wangari Ndirangu
