Google in talks to invest USD 700M in Kenya wind farm

Reports coming in indicate that Search giant Google is allegedly in talks to become an investor in a USD 700 million, 40,000 acre Lake Turkana Wind Power Project.

The Kenyan project’s 310 megawatt capacity is expected to boost Kenya’s installed energy capacity by 20 percent.

The report says that if the deal is finalized, Google would be a minority stakeholder.

Google has however declined to comment on its involvement.

CNBC says, no deal has been finalized as of yet.

Kwame Parker, head of power and infrastructure for East Africa at South Africa’s Standard Bank, noted that if Google did take a stake, it would be a significant vote of confidence for investors considering African power market entry. Parker helped arrange financing for Turkana but declined to comment more specifically on Google’s plans.

Google has  a number of investments in renewable energy and they have been domestic, largely in wind and solar farms in places like West Texas and California’s Mojave Desert, but the company is also looking beyond.

In 2013, Google invested USD 12 million in South Africa’s Jasper Power Project.

Via IT News Africa