Kipevu III Gas Turbine Environmental Impact and Social Assessment Study

Narrative Description of Project.

Kipevu III & IV GT project is a Simple Cycle 80MW Gas Turbine (GT) at Kipevu, which will be its third GT after Nairobi South GT (13.5MW) and Kipevu GTs  (60MW). The purpose of the project is to provide 70MW (35 MWx2) of electricity to the grid using turbines initially running on Dual purpose Kerosene (DPK). The plant will be fuel flexible to run on Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK) and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). The proposed above surface fuel storage tank will a capacity of 12,000m3.  The project involved power plant construction and connection to the grid through a very 132 kV line at KPLC Kipevu substation. The construction is planned take approximately one year. The contract is based on Engineer Procure and Construct (EPC) basis. Under these arrangements, the constructor is supposed to design, construct and handover the project to KenGen upon completion. Kipevu is located in northwest coast of Mombasa on port Reitz. The proposed site has a 75MW diesel station, two gas turbines with a total capacity of 60 MW and the relics of an old 60 MW steam plant.

Services provided by the firm staff.

EMC was contracted by KenGen to assess the environmental and social impact of the project in the region and the nation at large. The study involved identifying both positive and negative impacts and the most appropriate interventions during construction, implementation, operation and decommissioning, collect baseline socioeconomic data of the project area and potential impact expected from project construction, implementation, operation and decommissioning, develop an environmental monitoring program during construction and operation and present plans to minimize, mitigate, or eliminate negative effects and impacts and describe how this plan will be implemented, reviewing of the power plant design and its compliance to environmental requirements, identification and contact stakeholders, facilitate and rapporteur public consultation and workshops’ at an appropriate time in the assignment schedule.  EMC calculated and predicted the emission from the plant and modeled the plume dispersal. An ambient analysis of the area was also assessed to determine the cumulative effect of the plant in the ambient air quality.