Kenya is set to construct a 30MW solar park in Mwale Medical and Technology City (MMTC), a new green city in western Kenya under construction.
MCX Environmental Energy Corp, a US company specializing in renewable energy production announced that it will build the solar plant which will require an overall investment of US $100m.
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Mwale solar park
The MCX Environmental Energy project is also part of the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Power Africa initiative, launched by the Obama administration and continued under the Trump administration, to provide access to electricity for un-served populations in sub-Saharan Africa.
The solar project will have a capacity of 30MW, expandable to 50MW. It will benefit from the generosity of the newly created US $60bn International Development Finance Corporation (IDFC) group, funded by the U.S. government, whose goal is to enable the U.S. private sector to compete with Chinese investment, which is growing in Africa and elsewhere in the world.
Mwale Medical and Technology City
The new green city, located in Butere Sub-County, Kakamega is set to house 4,800 environmentally friendly, “affordable” and medium-sized residences. The city will also feature a 5,000-bed reference hospital and one of Kenya’s largest shopping centres.
The entire city estimated to cost US $2bn will operate with green energy sources. Hundreds of solar streetlights are planned, along with a plant capable of producing 144 MW, via a household waste incinerator with energy recovery. The MCX Environmental Energy’s photovoltaic solar park will be delivered in December 2020.
