Is Gaildorf a model for Kenya? – This is the question a six-member delegation from Kenyan power generation company KenGen posed when it came to visit the building site of the Gaildorf natural energy storage plant. KenGen is Kenya’s largest electricity producer, covering three quarters of the country’s installed capacity with its power plants.

 

Renewable energies already make up for more than 80 % of Kenya’s electricity needs. With economic growth, annual electricity needs continue to soar rapidly. In the last five years alone, the country has doubled its production capacities. Due to its geographical locations, Kenya relies on geothermal and wind energy. This increases the demand for balancing power; and this demand can be met by already well-developed hydroelectric power.

 

Now, however, the demand for peak power is also increasing, which is why Kenya’s hydroelectric power plants are reaching their limits with a further expansion of wind energy and photovoltaics. This is where Gaildorf comes in: “The Water Battery can quickly, and above all sustainably, increase balancing and storage capacities,” explains Gerhard Ihle of Naturspeicher GmbH, who guided the guests around the building site. “At this point, they took particular notice and interest. The Water Battery is an ideal complement to Kenya’s strategy of expanding renewable energies. We will certainly keep in touch.”

 

Photocredits: Naturspeicher GmbH