Amu Power, the consortium behind the proposed 1,050 MW coal-fired power plant in Lamu County, has initiated talks in a bid to save the stalled project.
Amu, a joint venture between Centum and Gulf Power, has faced a series of setbacks as it tried to pull off the mega-project.
A trading update from Centum disclosed that Amu was in talks to either progress the project or facilitate its sale.
The plant has been the target of environmental activists who led the ‘Decoalonize‘ campaign against the project.
In addition, environmental licences for the project were revoked by the National Environmental Tribunal (NET).
Piling on to their woes, General Electric, who were lined up as technical partners on the project, announced that they would be moving away from coal ventures as part of their sustainability plan.
Taking into account the numerous hurdles facing the project, Centum revealed that it had made a provision of Ksh2.1 billion, representing the amount it has invested in the project so far.
“Discussions are progressing with key stakeholders to agree on the way forward on the project,” the update from Centum read in part.
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With Centum having already written off the investment, CEO James Mworia explained that the progress of the project or its sale would be a plus for Centum.
“Amu is still working on the project and any progress or recovery will be a gain to Centum,” he stated.
Before running into headwinds thanks to pressure from environmental activists, Amu Power had secured, among other things, a power purchase agreement with Kenya Power, loan agreements and a Government of Kenya Letter of Support.
The lack of a partial risk guarantee, however, also complicated matters particularly with lenders.
Standard Bank, which had agreed to finance the project, also recently unveiled a new policy limiting its participation in coal-related ventures.
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