Risky Business: Developing Geothermal Power in Kenya

This report examines the expansion of geothermal power in Kenya, highlighting its role in the country's climate mitigation goals and the challenges of attracting private investment due to social, political, and environmental risks.

• Geothermal power expansion is a central part of Kenya's nationally determined contributions (NDCs) for global climate change mitigation and is key to its goal of becoming a middle-income country with a climate-resilient green economy.
• While Kenya has developed significant technical expertise in geothermal energy through state-owned utilities over forty years, attracting the private investment required for faster development is hindered by financial, political, social, and environmental risks.
• The authors argue that the optimism regarding geothermal potential must be balanced with actions to mitigate social and political risks, ensuring that development is responsible and benefits are shared equitably with local communities.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2018). Risky Business: Developing Geothermal Power in Kenya. https://www.sei.org/publications/risky-business-developing-geothermal-power-kenya/

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Risky Business: Developing Geothermal Power in Kenya. 2018. https://www.sei.org/publications/risky-business-developing-geothermal-power-kenya/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Risky Business: Developing Geothermal Power in Kenya |date=29 October 2018 |url=https://www.sei.org/publications/risky-business-developing-geothermal-power-kenya/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2018risky, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Risky Business: Developing Geothermal Power in Kenya}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2018}, month = oct, url = {https://www.sei.org/publications/risky-business-developing-geothermal-power-kenya/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }