WorleyParsons has recently signed a 22-month owner’s engineer contract for the Kipeto Wind Power Project in Kenya, the second largest in the country after the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project. The Kipeto Wind Power Project will comprise 60 wind turbines generating a combined capacity of 100 MW of clean, renewable electrical energy that will be fed into the Kenyan national grid.

The Kipeto Wind Power Project is located in the Kajiado County, south west of Nairobi. As owner's engineer, WorleyParsons will provide invaluable wind power project expertise to Kipeto Energy Limited (KEL), who are responsible for financing, construction and operation of the project; and oversee EPC contractor China Machinery Engineering Corp (CMEC). The 60 turbines will be manufactured by General Electric Co.

The Kipeto project comes on the back of WorleyParsons’ successful completion of the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project, the largest in Africa, where the energy and resources company provided overall project management, engineering review and construction management services.

WorleyParsons Project Director Tim Gaskell says the Kipeto project will draw on WorleyParsons’ Kenyan wind power expertise gained during the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project, and utilise the same skilled team from the company’s Kenyan and South African operations.

“Our successful execution of the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project and the experience gained played a key role in WorleyParsons having been awarded the Kipeto project, as we have excellent in-country knowledge and can offer the services of a highly experienced local team. The fact that WorleyParsons already has well established branches in Nairobi and also in Beijing – where CMEC are based – were further advantages,” says Gaskell.

Gaskell says that while Kipeto Energy Limited awaits financial close and final notice to proceed, WorleyParsons has established a project team on site to begin upfront work. Currently the team is overseeing the building of 85 houses for the local Masai community who own the land.

This forms part of the agreements between the project and the individual landowners that include the relocation of the affected landowners and their families, 30-year land lease agreements with 25 individual landowners, and way leave agreements with 24 landowners along the transmission line route.

Gaskell says WorleyParsons views close communication with the landowners and the community as integral to the project and has already liaised extensively with stakeholders to ensure tangible benefits to the local economy as well as contributing to the general welfare of those living within the project area.    

The Kipeto project will also create opportunities for local suppliers and artisans to provide goods and services to the project, land leases, community upliftment projects, and upgrades to roads.  

In addition, ongoing environmental impact assessments will mitigate any impact the project may have on the land, its people and surrounding flora and fauna, says Gaskell.

Once the project is given the green light to proceed with full scope, work will begin on access roads. These include the new 17-kilometre road to the project site, maintenance on existing roads to the wind farm from the port in Mombasa, and establishing a road network between the wind turbines. Construction of turbine foundations will follow while the substation and overhead power lines are simultaneously installed. Once the foundations are dug and cast, the turbines will be erected, connected to the substation, and begin feeding into the Kenyan national power grid.

WorleyParsons’ design review includes overseeing the entire project from geotechnical drilling to determine ground conditions and the design of the foundations, through to project schedule, quality control, electrical and civil engineering design, housing construction, and health and safety.

Gaskell says that although Kipeto has its own unique challenges, such as the soft, muddy clay that covers much of the site, overall the location is more accessible than Lake Turkana as it is relatively close to Nairobi and requires only 17 kilometres of transmission lines.

The Kipeto Wind Power Project is expected to contribute significantly to the Kenyan economy as well as alleviate an increasing demand for power which is anticipated to rise to approximately 15 000 MW by 2030. This is according to Kenya Power who will buy the power generated by the project for a period of 20 years and distribute it into the national grid.

Globally, wind energy is fast becoming one of the most popular sources of renewable electricity production. In addition to being a low-carbon source of energy, it also has little or no emissions and does not require large volumes of water, mining, drilling or transportation of fuel.