Djibouti Pays KenGen: A $1 Million Offer on a Five-Year-Old Geothermal Drilling Debt Djibouti has finally moved to pay part of what it owes Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) for drilling work done near Lake Assal. The amount is small next to KenGen's balance sheet. What it says about selling geothermal drilling services across Africa matters a lot more. KenGen's latest annual report says Djibouti's state geothermal agency, the Office Djiboutien de Développement de l'Énergie Géothermique (ODDEG), has offered a first instalment of about $1 million (Sh129 million) against outstanding invoices of $2.13 million (Sh276.03 million), according to Business Daily. "ODDEG has acknowledged the debt and has proposed an initial payment of $1 million as the first instalment towards settlement," KenGen said in the report. KenGen is Kenya's largest power producer, with about 54% of the market. The Kenyan government owns 70% of the company and the public holds t...
“Deep inside a purpose-built turbine hall at Menengai, something ancient met something modern — and the lights of an entire nation moved a little closer to permanently on." There are moments in infrastructure history that arrive without spectacle yet reshape entire industries. No fireworks. No ribbon-cutting theatrics. Just a valve opening, a surge of pressure, and a machine beginning to move. This week, at , one of those moments occurred. confirmed that steam had been successfully admitted into the turbine at its 35MW Menengai II Geothermal Power Station — the decisive step known as hot commissioning . It is the point where engineering theory meets physical reality. Where a project ceases to be an idea and becomes infrastructure. On paper, it is a routine milestone. In reality, it is a signal — one that echoes far beyond Nakuru County. Because what just happened at Menengai is not just about 35MW. It is about proving that geothermal energy in Africa has entered a new phase: ...