Why Kenya is betting on geothermal power
Business Daily
BBC
4.4 • 816 Ratings
🗓️ 21 April 2026
⏱️ 18 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Kenya is emerging as one of Africa’s leading producers of geothermal power. While it remains a niche but growing industry globally, in Kenya it has become a vital and reliable source of electricity.
We explore how this energy is harnessed, why it has become so central to the country’s power supply, and the plans to build what some are calling Africa’s first geothermal‑powered city.
If you'd like to get in touch with the team, our email address is businessdaily@bbc.co.uk
Presented and produced by Michael Kaloki
Business Daily is the home of in-depth audio journalism devoted to the world of money and work. From small startup stories to big corporate takeovers, global economic shifts to trends in technology, we look at the key figures, ideas and events shaping business.
Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.
Recent episodes explore the weight-loss drug revolution, the growth in AI, the cost of living, the economic impact of the war in the Middle East, and why bond markets are so powerful.
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(Picture: Olkaria II geothermal power plant in Kenya. Credit: Getty Images)
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:06.6 | Hello, you're listening to Business Daily from the BBC World Service. I'm Michael Kalloki. |
| 0:14.6 | Today, we're looking at Kenya as a leading producer of geothermal power on the African continent. |
| 0:22.5 | Globally, geothermal energy is a niche but growing industry, |
| 0:27.3 | with power plants around the world generating reliable electricity for factories, schools, shops and homes. |
| 0:36.3 | Kenya is ahead in terms of technology and expertise. And honestly, I think |
| 0:42.2 | we are ripe even to start exporting these expertise to neighboring countries. The country is now |
| 0:48.5 | building what some are calling Africa's first geothermal-powered city. So how did geothermal energy grow to become so vital for Kenya, |
| 0:59.1 | turning the East Africa nation into one of Africa's leading producers? |
| 1:03.9 | That's all coming up in Business Daily from the BBC. |
| 1:12.2 | Geothermal energy is a type of renewable energy |
| 1:15.5 | that uses heat from beneath the Earth's surface |
| 1:19.5 | to generate power. |
| 1:21.6 | It currently provides a small share |
| 1:23.7 | of the global energy supply, |
| 1:26.0 | but it's steady, reliable and growing. |
| 1:29.3 | The International Energy Agency says geothermal could supply up to 15% of the rise in global electricity demand by 2050. |
| 1:42.3 | Here in Kenya, a unique opportunity lies beneath the surface. |
| 1:48.0 | Along the volcanic landscapes of the East African Rift Valley, |
| 1:53.0 | tectonic activity is heating the Earth's crust, |
| 1:57.0 | releasing huge amounts of geothermal energy that the country is harnessing for power. |
| 2:06.0 | I'm just leaving Kenya's capital, Nairobi. |
... |
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