Infrastructure
Kopere Solar Power Project
The plant will have a 40MW installed capacity.
Kopere Solar Power Project is a 40MW solar plant located in Kopere village in Nandi County, near the border with Kisumu County – about 300 km from Nairobi.
The solar plant sits on about 250 square kilometres of land.
Project details
Kopere Solar Power Project is a 40 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant about 5 km from Kopere shopping centre in Nandi County.
The project involves the construction of a 33/133 kV substation and a 1.8 km T-line to evacuate the electricity to the national grid via the 132 kV Lessos-Muhoroni T-line network operated by Kenya Power, on a 20-year ‘take or pay’ agreement.
The Kopere Solar Power Station will be set on a 157 hectares site near Kopera and Chemilil villages in Tinderet, Nandi County, about 300 km north-west of Nairobi.
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The project is expected to generate about 101.9 GWh/year, which is enough to meet the electricity requirements of 600,000 homes.
Developers
The project is developed by Voltalia Portugal SA, a subsidiary of the French energy firm Voltalia, via the Kopere Energy Investment (France) holding company.
Development status
Proposed. The project was expected to start in 2019.
Power purchase agreement
The power generated from the Kopere Solar Park will be sold to Kenya Power under a 2018 power purchase agreement at the rate of ¢8/kWh.
Funding details
The total project cost including the T-line is $63.9 million financed with a debt-to-equity ratio of 75:25, with expected debt at $47.94 million.
The Climate Investment Fund’s Scaling-up Renewable Energy Program (SREP) will provide a concessional loan of $11.6 million.
The remaining debt of $36.34 million (senior loan) will be divided between AfDB and European DFI, with AfDB providing $18.17 million.
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