• Plant to produce 100,000 tons of green ammonia annually

• Kenya aims to double geothermal capacity by 2030
  

China’s Kaishan Group Co. Ltd said on Tuesday that its subsidiary, Kaishan Terra Green Ammonia Limited, has signed a deal with Kenya’s electricity producer KenGen to build a 165.4-megawatt (MW) geothermal power plant in the East African nation.

The project is estimated to cost about $800 million. According to industry website ThinkGeoEnergy, the plant will primarily produce 100,000 tons of green ammonia per year, along with derivatives such as urea and calcium ammonium nitrate for fertilizer production.

Once operational, the project is expected to generate annual revenue of between $220 million and $250 million.

With this investment, Kaishan Group aims to strengthen its global position in green ammonia and expand its footprint in Kenya’s energy sector. The company previously announced an investment of about $93 million in the 35 MW “Orpower 22” geothermal project at Menengai in October 2024. More broadly, the Chinese firm is expanding its geothermal energy operations.

Kenya ranks as the world’s seventh-largest producer of geothermal energy, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), but currently utilizes only 950 MW of an estimated potential of nearly 10,000 MW. East Africa’s largest economy, which has one of the continent’s cleanest electricity mixes, plans to double its geothermal power capacity by 2030.

Espoir Olodo