SkyPower signed a landmark agreement with the Kenyan Ministry of Energy and Petroleum for the development of 1 gigawatt (GW) capacity of world-class solar projects, according to the press release Monday.
The $2.2 billion agreement was signed in Nairobi, Kenya at the sixth annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) which was initiated by the U.S. government in 2010 for projects which will be built in four phases in Kenya over the next five years.
GES 2015 hosted an unprecedented convention of high-level leaders from around the globe, including U.S. President Barack Obama and H.E. Uhuru Kenyatta, president of the Republic of Kenya. SkyPower proudly sponsored the summit as an official Solar Energy Partner.
SkyPower’s $2.2 billion investment is expected to create more than 25,000 total job years in Kenya and includes 200 megawatts of fabrication and assembly facilities, as well as a commitment of $173 million towards education, training, research and development.
SkyPower has a long history of working closely with local communities to produce hundreds of millions of kilowatt hours (kWh) of clean electricity every year, while ensuring that those closest to the developments reap the rewards of new jobs, education, skills training and accessible energy.
SkyPower is Canada-based and one of the world’s largest developer and owner of utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) energy projects. The company's team has built, assembled and acquired an extensive pipeline of over 25 GW worldwide – 6 GW of which was recently announced in bilateral agreements to be built on the continent of Africa over the next five years in both Egypt and Nigeria.
By Gulsen Cagatay
Anadolu Agency
gulsen.cagatay@aa.com.tr