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Huawei has reaffirmed its commitment to advancing Kenya’s green energy goals by delivering cutting-edge technologies tailored to improve grid performance and rural electrification.
The company’s advanced Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) solutions, smart grid technologies, and AI-powered energy management systems are key enablers in realizing Kenya’s vision of 100% renewable energy by 2030.
Through its innovative solutions, Huawei aims to drive efficiency and resilience in Kenya’s power infrastructure while supporting the country’s efforts to meet international climate goals and energy access targets.
The pledge was made during a high-level roundtable under the theme “Utility PV and Battery Energy Storage Systems: Energy Storage Integration for Kenya’s Grid Resilience & Energy Transition,” convened by Huawei Eastern Africa.
The event brought together senior stakeholders from Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC), the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA), Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (KETRACO), and Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KENGEN) to discuss the role of advanced technologies in accelerating the country’s transition to a low-carbon, sustainable energy future.
Kenya has made significant strides toward achieving its Vision 2030 with ambitious goals for renewable energy adoption.
The country’s long-term energy vision, supported by green energy policies and international climate commitments, aims for 100% renewable energy by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2050. Solar energy, alongside wind and geothermal, is positioned to play a central role in meeting these goals.
As Kenya accelerates its transition to clean energy, the roundtable emphasized the importance of innovative storage solutions and smart grid technologies to ensure that solar power can be efficiently integrated and managed within the national grid. These technologies will be essential for enhancing grid resilience, reliability, and affordability key pillars of Kenya’s green energy transition.
One of the central themes discussed at the roundtable was the critical role of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) in stabilizing Kenya’s increasingly renewable-powered grid. With solar capacity rapidly growing, BESS solutions will allow excess energy to be stored and used when solar production is low or demand is high. This capability is essential to mitigating the intermittency of renewable sources and ensuring reliable, affordable, and clean energy for all Kenyans, in line with the country’s sustainability goals.
As of 2024, Kenya has over 1,600 solar companies and nearly 2,000 trained solar technicians, all contributing to the country’s green energy agenda. By leveraging advanced storage technologies, Kenya can enhance energy security while reducing dependency on fossil fuel-based power sources.
The roundtable also addressed the role of grid-forming technology—an emerging innovation that helps renewable energy sources stabilize power networks by providing essential voltage and frequency support. This technology, increasingly recognized worldwide, is a crucial enabler of renewable energy integration in grids that have traditionally relied on fossil fuels for stability.
With Kenya’s solar generation capacity expanding, the use of grid-forming inverters will be instrumental in providing the voltage and frequency regulation needed to maintain a stable and resilient grid, while avoiding blackouts or disruptions in service.
In line with Kenya’s green energy transition goals, the roundtable discussed the role of mini-grids and off-grid solar solutions in improving rural energy access. These solutions are essential for addressing energy inequality, ensuring that even the most remote regions benefit from clean, reliable power. Huawei and its partners emphasized the importance of flexible, scalable storage systems that can support current off-grid projects while remaining adaptable for integration into the broader grid in the future.
Kenya’s rural electrification efforts align with the country’s commitment to universal energy access and poverty alleviation, both of which are key components of Kenya’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement.
As Kenya’s energy transition accelerates, the roundtable participants stressed the need for continued investment in skills development to address the growing demand for trained solar technicians, engineers, and energy professionals. Building a local workforce that is capable of installing, maintaining, and optimizing clean energy systems will be crucial in ensuring the sustainability of Kenya’s green energy transition.
Moreover, stakeholders emphasized the need for policy coherence and stability to foster an enabling environment for the growth of Kenya’s renewable energy sector. The reduction of VAT on solar products and incentivizing investments in energy storage are just a few examples of policy actions that can further strengthen Kenya’s clean energy sector and help meet its climate and energy goals.
