THE ROADMAP

POWER AFRICA’S
MULTI-DONOR
GEOTHERMAL
STRATEGY
COORDINATES
GEOTHERMAL
SUPPORT
Olkaria geothermal complex and power station, the first geothermal power
plant in Africa. Photo: Courtesy of IRENA
Geothermal is a source of
renewable base load energy, and when
developed properly can replace polluting
base load sources at a lower cost. It has the
potential to be a significant source of power
throughout East Africa, notably in Kenya
and Ethiopia with an estimated combined
12,000 MW of generation potential.
To ensure a coordinated approach to East
Africa’s geothermal development, Power Africa
has brought together a wide range of its
private sector and development partners and
African governments and institutions, including
the African Union Commission (AUC), to
develop a multi-donor geothermal strategy
to improve partner coordination and the
targeting of private investment.
WHY ISN’T GEOTHERMAL
A BIGGER PART OF THE
ENERGY MIX?
Geothermal development is complex and
expensive. As with oil and gas, developers
must find and harness a fuel source that is
thousands of meters below the ground. It
takes numerous studies, in-depth planning,
and significant up-front capital investment
to confirm the quality of resources. In
addition to the hurdles shared with oil and
gas development, geothermal resources are
geographically limited (to East Africa) and
often in remote locations without access
to roads or ports. Moreover, geothermal
resources cannot be exported like oil or
gas. As a result, there has been less private
investment in geothermal than other base
load fuels that can be exported globally for
higher returns.
42 — PILLAR 1