Little-known Kenyan billionaire Humphrey Kariuki has entered into an agreement that will now see him construct a Sh. 40 billion gas power plant in Mozambique.
Kariuki has struck the deal through his Great Lakes Africa Energy (GLAE) firm, which is a UK-based pan-African energy solution company that develops and operates power projects in Southern Africa.
“As part of the Mozambique government’s intended use of natural gas for the development of domestic power projects, GLAE will develop, finance, build, own and operate a 250 MW gas-fired electric generating power plant, planned in northern Mozambique,” said GLAE director Michael Kearns.
Kariuki signed the agreement last Friday in Maputo to begin the construction of a 250 megawatt (MW) gas-fired electricity generating power plant. At 250 MW, GLAE Mozambican gas-fired power plant will be one of the largest conventional sources of electricity in the country.
Kariuki said: “We are delighted to have been selected by the government of Mozambique to help harness the significant potential of the Rovuma Basin gas reserves. Through the state-of-the art power projects, GL Africa Energy is playing a vital role in generating affordable power to address the significant energy shortfall in the region and drive the development of the African continent.”
GLAE also owns and operates a 105 MW power plant in the Zambia’s copper belt town of Ndola, through Ndola Energy Company Ltd (NECL) under a power purchase agreement with the Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation (ZESCO).
