The Cabinet Secretary (CS) for Energy Dr. Monica Juma has said that plans are underway to pilot green hydrogen projects in the country.
The CS said a national green hydrogen working group comprising of stakeholders from the public and private sectors has already been set up to define a roadmap on the future of the green hydrogen in Kenya and to enact the requisite polices and regulation that will support the adoption of the hydrogen source of power.
She said that the government is working closely with the World Bank and the sector to develop guidelines that will drive the implementation of enterprise storage to store power.
“The stored power will have a significant impact on the reliability, and availability of power and ultimately, on the cost of power,” said Juma.
The CS was speaking on Wednesday during the launch of the Kenya Power Manufacturers’, Technology and Innovations Expo held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre.
The Expo themed ‘Clean, Affordable and Sustainable Energy’, hosted by Kenya Power Company (KPLC) has brought together equipment manufacturers and technology providers to market and display their equipment and solutions that exhibit business efficiency.
She commended the entire energy family for their focus in mounting meetings and conferences to reflect on the state of energy, noting that such forums were important as the energy sector is at an inflection point with seismic shifts in regards to giving direction on power generation, distribution and deploying of energy to the people.
“This KPLC expo comes at a very opportune moment when Kenya is on a transformation path that seeks to improve and enhance efficiencies,” said Dr. Juma.
She reiterated that Kenya is on a transformation path to improve and enhance the sectors’ efficiencies and determine its energy trajectory to ensure a sustainable future that guarantees secure, sufficient, reliable and low cost energy for Kenyans.
The CS said the war between Russia and Ukraine had added another urgent dimension to the energy question underscoring the centrality of energy security.
Dr. Juma noted that since the war started, Africa like the rest of the world has been faced with sustained energy pressure which is translating into various vulnerabilities and insecurities among them food insecurity, fuel insecurity and social and economic instability, a need she said required the country to move away from dependence.
She also stated that her ministry is looking to address the challenges in the sector by harmonizing the operations in the sector among them grid technologies, compatibility and the quality of services offered to customers.
In her remarks, the Chairman Board of Directors KPLC Vivienne Yeda announced that the government in conjunction with Kenya Power has rolled out a cross-cutting transformation programme to improve its efficiency and enhance its agility.
She said affordable energy is not only a corporate goal for KPLC and the energy sector but a universal goal that the global community aspires to achieve not later than 2030.
“This means that the investments we all make today must take into account the access and affordability of energy today and far into the long distant future,” Yeda added.
The Managing Director KPLC Geoffery Muli observed that the world is conscious of the environment and that the clean energy agenda is gaining momentum.
“We are alive to clean energy opportunities and as such, we are aggressively pursuing opportunities in clean energy cooking and e-mobility as part of our effort to reduce carbon emissions and to increase our revenue,” said Muli.
The equipment manufacturers and technology providers who were showcasing their projects included the K-MACHO and numeral IOT which is an electronic design and manufacturing company that has innovated the first smart meter in Africa.
By Caroline Mbusa and Wambui Muthoni
