Kenya’s national power utility said on Tuesday that rapid uptake of variable renewable energy sources such as wind and solar was affecting the stability and reliability of the East African country’s electricity grid.
Kenya Power said that variable renewable energy sources now accounted for more than 20% of total grid capacity, whereas global benchmarks pointed to a 15% upper limit.
During peak day demand, variable renewable energy can account for 34% of the energy mix, it added.
“This exposes the national grid to system vulnerability when wind and solar suddenly dip or rise in production, forcing the grid to take on other generation sources to cushion the intermittency of generation,” it said in a statement.
Investments in renewable energy alternatives
This mirrors the situation in other regions such as Europe which have a high amount of renewable energy on the grid.
Elsewhere, operators can ask for less renewable power generation in a process called curtailment to keep the grid frequency stable and avoid transmission bottlenecks.
But under Kenya’s “take or pay” model, it has no choice but to pay for and dispatch the wind and solar.
“Kenya Power dispatches extra generation plants at extra costs to mitigate against the collapse of the grid when (variable renewable energy sources) suddenly dip or rise in production – a common occurrence – which ultimately increases the cost paid by final consumers,” it said.
The company recommended prioritising investments in renewable energy sources like geothermal and hydroelectric which are more stable than wind and solar.
