[SIZE=6]KenGen to lose revenues at Mombasa diesel plant[/SIZE]
TUESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2017 20:08
BY DAVID HERBLING http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/image/view/-/4067046/medRes/1734864/-/maxw/900/-/6jvog6z/-/keter.jpg
Kenya Electricity Generating Co (KenGen) will see its thermal power earnings drop significantly as the government begins a gradual shutdown of its diesel generators at the Coast after the region was connected to cheaper steam power.
Mombasa-based Kipevu I and III are set to be pulled out of the grid in “a few months” after the switching on of a high-voltage power line to evacuate cheap geothermal electricity from Olkaria, Energy secretary Charles Keter said.
KenGen’s earnings from thermal power was Sh3.79 billion in June 2016, accounting for 12.8 per cent of total electricity revenue of Sh29.5 billion in the review period.
“Kipevu is not operating at maximum hours. They’re only running on need basis. We are gradually increasing the amount being channelled to the Coast to ensure stability of the line,” Mr Keter said in an interview.
“We expect them to earn more from Olkaria fields to compensate for the thermal,” he said.
Hitherto, the coastal region was not connected to the Olkaria system.
Green energy is the future. Sorry to say but oil prices will never rebound. Lithium is the next oil. The middle east started diversifying their economies long time. Turkana oil will be redundant in 20 years.
They have been saying that since 1980’s. Oil is still key in global economy. Oil is easy combustible and within seconds of it been lit, it provides power. Lithium batteries still needs to be recharged and what is the source of that recharge, its not green energy. It also takes hours to fully charge. The oil clean energy able to replace oil globally is nuclear power. Solar is too expensive and only useful during the day. Wind is expensive and unreliable. The current low oil price is due to manipulation of the market by usa under former President Obama. The usa limit its imports into the country and therefore creates a glut of oil in the global market. The prices drops to less than $40 a barrel and that makes their shale oil production to be attractive. Shale oil can therefore meet their domestic oil demands without using their vast oil reserves. Its sole aim of the oil price manipulation was to weaken the rapidly reemergence of Russia. Russia economic boom and rehabilitation of its industrial base was possible from a decade of high oil and gas prices. Unfortunately for the usa, its alley Saudia Arabia suffered a lot as well while it has been catastrophic for Venezuela, Angola and Nigeria.
I beg to differ. On that shale oil production I think you have it the other way around. Extraction in North America is very expensive and most oil fields are untenable at $40. Has nothing to do with Russia, everyone is hurting. In Canada oil sands people have lost jobs in the thousands due to low oil prices. They can only break even above 40$. It must be cheaper to extract in Russia.
Lithium has come a long way from what it was five years ago. Storage, charging have improved exponentially since people have invested in R&D heavily. Other than industrial use which I don’t know much about, the motor vehicle is heading in that direction big time. There’s already a huge lithium demand besting supply.
OK, on shale. On lithium, I’m still not sold. Even electric cars looks good on paper but drivers rating paints a big problem. Its only good for short distances where you can safely drive to and from without recharging. Almost all electric car owner recharge at home. There are very few recharging stations if any at the highways so most wouldn’t attempt trying any long trips with them. Worst is the downturn as you await for hours for the battery to recharge fully then proceed. It wouldn’t make sense to charge anything less than 100%. Right now the hybrid electric/diesel/petrol engine is more practical. 20 years that could change as technology evolves and gets better. However in 20 years the world economy has also grown significantly as well and it needs 30% more energy than it uses now. Solar, wind can’t be that alternative energy. Only nuclear power can but that means fossil fuel use will still be much there. Why? Oil is convenient to use, easily available and the entire global machinery is based on it at industry and home. You cant replace the entire global machinery in 20 years. That’s too ambitious. Planes, ships and most railways in 2037 will still be using fuel. Electric current for home and industry in a industrialized nation ranges from 30000MW to 100000MW. That energy source can’t be stored in batteries. Those nations use a matrix of nuclear, coal, hydro, gas plants to run the grid. Heavy fuel and diesel plants are emergency power plants on standby to fill up where they have a shortfall or downturn on any of the matrix power plants.
There is no Middle Eastern economy that is trully diversified, though Iran and Oman are closer to the definition, the former due to decades of being constrained from selling oil, the latter dueto having less oil in the first place.
The rest are simply subsidising the other sectors of the economy. That is especially the case with the UAE, KSA and Kuwait.
I like Jubilee’s strategic step by step solution of things.
The big issue at hand was the high electricity bills.So in 2013/14 the assessment of energy sources concluded that the thermal(diesel&gas) power generators were costly and hyros,wind,geothermals cheaper.
Thus the geothermal development(Olkarias 4 and 1AU) were fast tracked. The expensive thermals mainly concentrated at the coast were next to be shut down due to the high fuel levy cost.Hence focus turned to KETRACO to have the geothermal power transmitted to coast to cover the expected shortfall upon the thermals scaledown.
Remember the Msa-Nbi 400kV line had stalled for almost 5 years due to wayleave issues with the Maasais. CS Keter personally intervened and with the presidents arbitration the local leaders convinced the Maasais and the line was finished.
Meanwhile the 400kV Isinya-Suswa line was similarly resolved and a direct connection of the Olkarias-Suswa-Isinya-Rabai line was ensured in early August 2017.
Now the downscaling of the thermals at the coast have started and soon…power bills will start dropping and the positive effect on the consumers,both private and industrial,will be felt.
So when someone talks of cheaper power,we should all appreciate the huge investments,efforts and planning behind, which can only be done by a focussed government led by visionary leaders.
Tesla supercharges fill a battery in a like 30 minutes. They are doubling the number of supercharges every year.
I believe in 10 years things will have moved very far in battery technology. Both storing and charging. I can predict under 5 minutes to fully charge a battery soon.
In terms of range, things can only get better. Already some batteries can go further on full charge than a full tank of fuel.
In terms of adoption, countries have already announced timelines on when to ban fuel vehicles.
So, now more than ever, electric is happening.
Fueled powered vehicles are the biggest cash cows in terms of taxes that is used to maintain road infrastructure. In fact, several states across the US that had provided subsidies for people to buy EVs have made dramatic U-turns. Georgia for example charges $300 a year to own an EV and Idaho $150.Expect a similar proposal to be put in place if EVs become popular here.
Are you ready for that?