KenGen Risks Losing Olkaria Wells Over 18-Year Licence Blunder Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) faces a serious legal and operational risk at Olkaria after an error in the coordinates of its geothermal licence left part of the company’s wells, steam infrastructure and other assets outside its legally recognised area. The licensing mistake, made nearly two decades ago, remains unresolved despite the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum acknowledging the problem in 2017. The dispute has raised questions about the security of KenGen’s investments, the government’s management of geothermal resources and the potential consequences for Kenya’s electricity supply. Olkaria is the country’s most important geothermal centre and accounts for the overwhelming majority of Kenya’s installed geothermal generation capacity. Licence Error Exposes Strategic Assets The problem dates back to September 19, 2008, when the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum issued KenGen a licence covering ...
⚡ Zenith Volts Breaks Ground on 1.24GW Off-Grid Data Center Campus in Roswell, NM
By: Robert Buluma
In a bold step toward sustainable, off-grid computing, Zenith Volts has secured planning approval for a massive 8,500-acre data center project in Roswell, New Mexico. The 1.24GW campus, set to be fully operational by November 2027, is designed to power AI, cloud, and high-performance workloads while integrating some of the most advanced energy and cooling solutions in the industry.
Powering the Future: Diverse Energy Solutions
The Roswell campus is planned as a fully diversified energy ecosystem. On-site solar arrays will provide primary power, while natural gas generators act as backup for reliability. Adding to this is a 250-acre battery energy storage system and modular solar-thermal hybrid setups—designed to balance peak load demands efficiently.
But the real game-changer? Geothermal cooling. By tapping into the stable underground temperatures of New Mexico, Zenith aims to drastically reduce energy consumption for cooling, which traditionally accounts for a significant portion of data center operational costs. This positions Roswell as not just a high-performance hub but also a model for sustainable, green computing.
A New Player with Big Ambitions
Founded earlier this year and headquartered in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Zenith Volts is new to the data center sector but has wasted no time making a statement. While the company is still engaging technology companies, cloud providers, and AI innovators to join as anchor partners, the project already highlights a growing trend: off-grid, sustainable infrastructure designed for hyperscale workloads.
The funding for the project is backed by Equitas Global Financial Guarantee Ltd, though ownership details of Zenith remain largely undisclosed. Zenith’s Roswell project joins a wave of ambitious developments in the U.S., including Pacifico Energy’s 5GW off-grid initiative, emphasizing the increasing demand for sustainable, high-capacity data solutions.
Why It Matters
As AI workloads grow and cloud computing continues to scale, the energy and sustainability footprint of data centers is under the spotlight. Zenith’s Roswell campus demonstrates a forward-thinking approach: combining renewable energy, storage, and geothermal cooling to create a resilient, low-carbon infrastructure.
If successful, this could redefine how future data centers are designed—not just for performance but for environmental responsibility.
Source:Pr News,Data Centre Dynamics

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