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London Distillers Kenya (LDK) Ltd is in talks with UK firm SolarCentury for solar energy storage technology that will see the brewer cut dependence on the national grid by 80 per cent.

The project is expected to boost LDK’s photovoltaic (PV) electricity beyond the current 924 MW installed capacity.

“We are able to rely on solar energy and therefore relieving the burden of connection to the national grid. Currently what we want to do is try to harness the energy storage so that we are able to even use it at night. We are trying to get some service providers to upscale the solar capacity,” Crispus Michira, environment officer at LDK, told Business Hub.

LDK has cut power bill costs by 50 percent since it started using the 924 MW solar plant in 2018 in Athi River, an area with high sun radiation levels. The 924 MW capacity is enough to serve the neighbouring communities during the day through mini-grid connection. 

The Energy and Petroleum Regulation Authority (EPRA) has however been slow to give manufacturers a nod to supply excess solar power.