Kenya energy mix 2026: 81% renewable, geothermal leads

Updated 13 November 2026

The Kenya energy mix for electricity was 81.13% renewable in the year to 30 June 2026, up from 80.48% a year earlier, according to the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA). Geothermal produced 40.91% of all electricity generated, hydro 22.65% and wind 12.31%, while imports supplied 12.19% and thermal plants 8.34%. Total generation rose 8.44% to 15,692.81 GWh, and peak demand hit a record 2,514.28 MW on 29 June 2026. This guide breaks down the mix, installed capacity and who uses the power.

Updated 13 November 2026. Figures come from EPRA’s Energy and Petroleum Statistics Report 2026, covering the financial year ended 30 June 2026, checked on 13 November 2026.

Kenya energy mix by source

Geothermal gained most. EPRA links its rise to new plants at Menengai in Nakuru County and stronger night-time demand, which let operators run geothermal plants harder and vent less steam. Hydro produced slightly more power thanks to better rainfall, but its share fell as imports grew. The 8.44% rise in generation, an extra 1,220.82 GWh, was the highest annual growth in the five years EPRA reviews.

Not all clean power was used. EPRA reports that 392.36 GWh of geothermal energy was curtailed through steam venting, 97.1% of all curtailment, with wind making up the remaining 11.58 GWh. Curtailment happens when baseload plants produce more than the grid can absorb, usually at night.

Installed capacity

Kenya’s installed generation capacity stood at 3,987.20 MW at June 2026: 3,263.02 MW connected to the national grid, 676.60 MW of captive plants (built by companies for their own use) and 47.58 MW off-grid.

Two plants of 35 MW each, Kaishan Renewable Energy and Globeleq, both in the Menengai field, added 70 MW of geothermal to the grid. Solar is far larger as capacity than as generation because 373.30 MW of it is captive: factories, farms and malls running their own panels. EPRA says solar PV and bioenergy make up 55.17% and 23.91% of captive capacity. Businesses weighing their own panels should read our guide to net metering rules in Kenya.

Imports in the Kenya energy mix

Kenya imported 1,913.66 GWh of electricity, up from 1,533.85 GWh. Ethiopia’s Ethiopian Electric Power supplied 1,577.66 GWh (82.45% of imports), Uganda 322.06 GWh (16.83%) and Tanzania 6.53 GWh, with 7.4 GWh from Ethiopia Electric Utility to the border town of Moyale. EPRA describes the rise as a growing reliance on imported power to meet domestic demand. EPRA counts imports separately from Kenya’s own generation sources.

Demand and connections

• Peak demand: a record 2,514.28 MW on 29 June 2026, up 8.55% from 2,316.22 MW. Kenya’s daily peak falls between 7pm and 9pm.
• Busiest month: January, with 1,360.19 GWh generated; the lowest was February at 1,246.3 GWh.
• New customers: 411,710 connected in the year, taking grid-connected customers to 10,432,707.

Who uses Kenya’s electricity

Of 12,444.71 GWh of electricity sold, domestic consumers used 4,327.07 GWh (34.77%), up from 3,640.32 GWh. Small commercial users, mainly SMEs, used 2,012.17 GWh (16.17%), up 5.17%. Large commercial and industrial users remain the biggest category at 5,920.06 GWh (47.57%), up 5.33%, though their share fell 204 basis points from 49.61%. Street lighting rose 15.12% to 173.17 GWh.

The fastest growth came from electric mobility: consumption under the e-mobility tariff jumped 143.01%, from 5.04 GWh to 12.25 GWh, as more electric buses, motorbikes and cars plugged in. See what that tariff costs in our guide to the EV charging tariff in Kenya.

What the Kenya energy mix means for businesses

• Green credentials: with about four-fifths of grid power from renewables, Kenyan exporters can point to a low-carbon grid when buyers ask about the emissions of goods made with grid electricity.
• Green finance: projects aligned to clean energy may qualify under the Kenya Green Finance Taxonomy and could be funded through green bonds.
• Carbon markets: renewable and efficiency projects may earn credits; see how carbon credits work in Kenya.
• Self-generation: rising captive solar shows firms are cutting bills and outage risk, a trend also seen in off-grid solar sales.

New rules shaping the Kenya energy mix

EPRA’s director general highlights several regulatory changes in the report’s foreword that will shape how the Kenya energy mix develops from here. The Energy (Electricity Market, Bulk Supply and Open Access) Regulations, 2026 set a framework for a competitive electricity market and for non-discriminatory access to transmission and distribution lines. In practice, that is the legal basis for large users and independent producers to trade power over the grid rather than buying everything through Kenya Power.

The authority also gazetted regulations on solar water heating and biofuels, and on mid and downstream petroleum. On the fuel side, new LPG handling capacity of 60,000 tonnes is meant to pave the way for an open tender system for LPG imports. Together, these changes point to more private renewable supply, more competition and a gradual shift of some demand from fossil fuels to clean electricity, though thermal plants still provide backup at peak times.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kenya’s energy mix?

In 2025/26, geothermal supplied 40.91% of electricity generated, hydro 22.65%, wind 12.31%, imports 12.19%, thermal 8.34%, solar about 3% and off-grid 0.58%, according to EPRA.

What percentage of Kenya’s electricity is renewable?

81.13% of electrical energy generated in the year to June 2026, up from 80.48% the year before.

What is Kenya’s main source of electricity?

Geothermal, from fields such as Olkaria and Menengai, at 40.91% of generation and 25.42% of installed capacity.

What is Kenya’s installed electricity capacity?

3,987.20 MW at June 2026, including 3,263.02 MW on the national grid, 676.60 MW of captive plants and 47.58 MW off-grid.

What was Kenya’s peak electricity demand in 2026?

A record 2,514.28 MW on 29 June 2026, up 8.55% from 2,316.22 MW the previous year.