Curtailment of geothermal power generation in Kenya dropped by 144.1 Gigawatt-hours (GWh) in the year ended June 2025, amid a surge in demand at night.
The Energy and Petroleum Regulator Authority (Epra) says the forced reduction in the generation of geothermal power fell to 668.7 GWh in the period under review, which was a drop of 17.7 per cent from 812.8 GWh a year earlier.
Curtailments refer to the amount of power that could have been produced but was pre-emptively rejected because the grid hit its limits.
This happens in instances where the electricity demand is low and is meant to safeguard the grid and avert blackouts by maintaining the balance between supply and demand.
The fall in the amount of geothermal power that was deliberately lost came in a period of sustained rise in demand for electricity, which put pressure on the geothermal plants, given that a number of them are temporarily out of operation.
“The reduction in curtailment was due to a discernible increase in night demand and unavailability of some geothermal generating units due to breakdowns,” Epra said.
The old Olkaria 1, which has three units with a combined generation of 45MW has been out of operation due to ongoing rehabilitation works, in order to increase generation capacities.
The economy recorded many peak demands in the year to June 2025, amid increased economic activities that triggered increased consumption.
The highest peak demand recorded in the year under review was 2,316.2 Megawatts (MW), which was on February 12.
Increased demand for electricity increased the pressure on local generation, meaning reduced curtailment of power from the geothermal plants, even as Kenya imported more of the cheap hydro-power from Ethiopia to avert blackouts and forced rationing.
Electricity curtailment in Kenya occurs between midnight and 0500 hours. Geothermal and wind plants are the only sources that are affected by curtailment in Kenya. Geothermal is the base-load in Kenya’s national grid.
During curtailment, geothermal power plants vent steam to the air or back into the reservoir to ensure that the grid does not take more electricity than required, especially when demand drops.
Epra says that no wind energy was curtailed in the year ended June 2025, underscoring the impact of the increased demand for electricity.
Monthly electricity curtailment in the year under review was highest and lowest in July last year and June 2025 at 117.5 GWh and 6.6 GWh of geothermal, respectively.
Epra has previously said that it is betting on increased demand for electricity from electric vehicles(EVs) to drive consumption at off-peak hours and thus lower the amount of electricity that is curtailed.
