Kenya Electricity Generating Company
Kenya Electricity Generating Company PLC or simply KenGen is a parastatal, and is the largest electric power producer in Kenya generating over 65% of the electricity consumed in the country. Overview. KenGen relies on various sources to generate electricity ranging from hydropower, geothermal, thermal and wind. Geothermal is the leading source, with an installed capacity of 713.13 MW, which is about 39% of the company's installed capacity. The company owns 30 hydropower plants with a combined capacity of 825.69 MW, four thermal power plants generating 256 MW, seven geothermal power plants with a generating capacity  of 713.13 MW and one Wind power plant at Ngong producing 26 MW, for a combined generating capacity of 1,817.82 MW. Presently KenGen operates five major geothermal power plants with 12 installed units, namely: Olkaria I, Olkaria II, Olkaria I unit 4 and 5, Olkaria IV, Olkaria V. 16 wellhead plants with 21 installed units. The Olkaria geothermal power stations are located in Nakuru County within the Hell's Gate National Park bordering Lake Naivasha within the Great Rift Valley. History. The company was founded on 1 February 1954 as the Kenya Power Company (KPC) and was commissioned to construct  the transmission line between Nairobi and Tororo in Uganda. This was to transmit power generated at the Owen Falls Dam to Kenya. KPC was also tasked to develop electricity generating facilities in the country. KPC was managed by the Kenya Power and Lighting Company under a management contract. In January 1997, the management of KPC was formally separated from Kenya Power as a direct result of reforms being under taken in the energy sector and the entire economy. Subsequently, on 19 January 1998 the company changed its name from Kenya Power Company to Kenya Electricity Generating Company. The trading name  KenGen PLC was also adopted at this point. In 2006, KenGen was listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange after the Government of Kenya sold 30 percent of its stake in the company through a successful initial public offering that received over 280,000 applications. Ownership. KenGen currently has 6,594,522,339 shares. The stock of Kenya Electricity Generating Company is listed on the NSE, where it trades under the symbol: KEGN List of power stations and installed capacity. See also List of power stations in Kenya Current capacity. The current capacity of KenGen's power stations are; Future projects. KenGen plans to increase  it installed capacity to 721 megawatts by 2025.