The transmission line will connect Loiyangalani in northern Kenya to the national grid at Suswa.

In March, the government signed a letter of support with Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP), the consortium that is developing the $825 million project. The project’s investors include Kemperman Paardekooper & Partners Africa, Aldwych International, Investment Fund for Developing Countries, Norfund and Vestas Wind Systems.

“The LTWP Project has been under private development since 2005, and that, in itself, is a remarkable testimony to the stability and soundness of the Kenyan electricity sector as well as the environment for independent power producers,” said Carlo Van Wageningen, chairman of LTWP.

In Tanzania, U.K.-based Aldwych International has partnered with World Bank members International Finance Corp. and Six Telecoms of Tanzania to develop a 100-MW wind farm at Singida, 700 km from the capital Dar es Salaam. This will be Tanzania’s first independent wind-energy project. The project is sponsored by Wind East Africa, which has yet to sign a power-purchase agreement with Tanzania Electric Supply Co. Ltd., the public utility that purchases electricity for distribution to consumers.

Although the $285-millon project has yet to close on funding, the three firms plan to contribute $18 million during the development stage and an additional combined $71 million in equity.

“We believe this groundbreaking project will help develop the Tanzania power sector and also the local economy around Singida,” said Mark Gammons, project director for Aldwych.

In Ethiopia, a new wind project is expected to be connected to the national grid to inject an additional 90 MW from the 120-MW Ashegoda wind farm. The wind project, the first in Ethiopia sponsored by Ethiopia Electric Power Corp. (EEPCO), is being constructed by France’s Vergnet. The first 30 MW, under the project's first phase, were connected to the national grid last year. The second phase is expected to be completed by the end of June 2013.

Vergnet is installing 30 1-MW turbines and 54 1.6-MW turbines at the wind-energy facility, which is financed by the French Development Agency and French financier BNP Paribas.

“Vergnet GEV HP 1-MW wind turbines are perfectly adapted to remote regions in Ethiopia where conventional wind turbines cannot be installed due to difficult access condition, limited infrastructure, lack of big cranes and unstable grid,” said EEPCO in a previous statement.