Voltalia selected to build and operate one of the largest solar plants in Eastern Africa
International renewable energy company Voltalia, headquared in Paris, France, announced that it has signed an agreement with Spanish independent power producer Alten Energias Renovables, whereby Voltaria is to provide construction and operation & maintenance services to Alten Energias Renovables for a 55 MW new solar plant in Kenya, one of the largest solar plants in Eastern Africa.
Following a competitive process, Voltalia was selected to build and operate the plant located in the state of Uasin Gishu in the municipality of Eldoret, Kenya’s fifth largest city.
The construction phase has just started for a commissioning expected by the end of 2020. Voltalia will also provide operation and maintenance services through a 10-year contract.
This solar project is currently the second largest in Central and Eastern Africa. It represents 2% of the total capacity of Kenya, one of the most dynamic country in the region. This additional capacity will contribute to reach the Kenyan government target of achieving universal electricity access by 2020 (vs. 70% in 2017).
This is the second project for Voltalia in Kenya. Voltalia had secured the 50 MW Kopere solar plant, located at Songhor farm, Nandi County in 2018. Its construction is to start by year-end 2019. Only distant by around 60 km, the Group will handle the construction of both solar plants in parallel, leveraging the on-the-ground knowledge of a local team.
To deliver these two projects, Voltalia will favour employment of local Kenyan staff of Voltalia and subcontractors. Voltalia expects up to 300 people to work on the Alten project at peak, and to create up to 15 permanent local jobs during the operation and maintenance phase.
Juan Laso, Executive President of Alten Energías Renovables highlighted:
“With Voltalia, we know we can rely on seasoned construction and maintenance teams with a strong track-record in many different countries, including in Africa. We also value the teams’ strong commitment to a top tier environmental and social performance, in line with our own goals.”
Sébastien Clerc, CEO of Voltalia commented:
“As part of our objective to give access to the most competitive electricity, we have strong ambitions in Africa. We were already successful in winning a large solar project in Kenya to fuel our own installed capacity, and we will now support our client, Alten, in its ambitious project. These two commitments make us a key contributor to the Kenyan government’s target of providing electricity access to the 50 million inhabitants of the country by 2020.”
In line with its mission to improve global environment and foster local development Voltalia will contribute to the achievement of Kenya’s 2020 renewables target and create local job opportunities.
Source: Press Release by Voltalia.
