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Mr Carlo Van Wageningen, the chairman of Lake Turkana Wind Power, told participants at the climate change talks in Durban that conclusion of the deal paves the way for the Euro 600 million plant to produce the first 50 megawatts (MW) of electricity in the third quarter of next year. "We expect to close the financing deal in March or April 2012 and to have full production of 300 MW a year later," he said in a presentation to showcase the project in Durban.

The announcement comes a year after the Treasury offered the financiers guarantees they had sought against political and other risks. The Turkana wind farm, billed as one of the largest in the world, is being financed through a 30 per cent syndicated loan arranged by the African Development Bank. Other financiers are the Standard and Ned banks of South Africa, BKF, a Danish development bank and the European Investment Bank who will pump in Euro 42.8 million.

The project is 51 per cent owned by Aldywich International, South Africa’s IDB (25 per cent), Pan Africa Investment Development Fund and Vestas– the Danish leading manufacturer of wind turbines (12.5 per cent) and the six co-founders (6.5 per cent).

KP and P Africa B.V, a special purpose vehicle, registered in Denmark is the holding company for the wind power firm. The Turkana wind power company hopes to produce electricity at the cost of 7.52 cents per kilowatt hour making it the cheapest power source in Kenya.

Zeddy Sambu, www.monitor.co.ug