A major new project in Kenya is placing the country at the forefront of green industrial transformation. The Chinese firm Kaishan Group, in partnership with state-owned Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen), has broken ground on a geothermal-powered fertiliser production facility in Kenya.
Here’s how it works, why it matters, and what it signals for Kenya (and beyond).
The plant will use 165 megawatts (MW) of geothermal power supplied by KenGen to drive the production of green ammonia, which will then be used to manufacture around 480,000 tonnes of eco-friendly fertiliser per year .
The development is billed as a flagship in Kenya’s push toward “green growth” and aims to reduce dependence on fertiliser imports, strengthen food security, and capture value locally rather than simply buying finished inputs overseas. President William Ruto described the plant as a step toward ensuring “farmers have a reliable, affordable and locally-produced supply of fertiliser” and that the initiative will help shield Kenya’s economy from global price shocks.
According to one government figure, Kenya’s “annual consumption” of fertiliser was estimated at about 750,000 metric tonnes (MT) roughly 50% of its potential of 1.5 million MT. One market report says Kenya imported around 758,000 MT of chemical fertilisers in 2021. Data from the global economy site show fertiliser use in Kenya at 50.5 kg per hectare of arable land in 2023 (up from about 33.2 kg/ha in 2022). Import data show Kenya’s fertiliser import bill at US$451.17 million in 2023.
Kaishan sees this as a strategic move into green ammonia / green hydrogen value chains, fertiliser manufacturing being a key step. According to the steam-supply agreement, the facility will produce not only fertiliser but will capture non-condensable gases (from geothermal steam) and utilise them.
For China, this aligns with its broader push into overseas renewable infrastructure, low-carbon industries, and Africa’s growing agribusiness sector. For Kenya, the opportunity is clear: transform raw energy potential (geothermal steam) into industrial-grade input (fertiliser) and reduce dependency on imports, dollar-exposure and supply-chain risk. The agreement suggests annual revenue of ~US$13 million for KenGen from the steam supply alone.
Geothermal provides continuous power (24/7), unlike solar (daytime only) or wind (intermittent). Chemical manufacturing (like ammonia synthesis) demands consistent, high-quality energy input. The project documentation notes that solar and wind projects for ammonia face bottlenecks due to energy storage requirements.
Kenya is one of the world’s top geothermal countries, with long-established fields such as the Olkaria Geothermal Field and Menengai Geothermal Field. The steam is available, which lowers upstream energy-risk.
Using geothermal steam directly for the chemical process (rather than first converting via electricity) can be more efficient, especially when capturing by-products (non-condensable gases) which then feed into fertiliser production.
With solar or wind, you need large-scale storage or backup generation to maintain continuous output for ammonia plants. That adds cost and complexity. The geothermal option sidesteps much of that.
Here’s a technical breakdown for readers:
Geothermal steam, when extracted from deep underground, often contains not just water vapour but non-condensable gases (NCGs), gases that don’t easily condense into liquid water under normal cooling. These might include CO₂, hydrogen sulphide (H₂S), methane, nitrogen, etc.
In a geothermal power or steam-extraction facility, steam is used to turn turbines (or drive a chemical process) and then cooled, condensed, and re-injected. But the non-condensable gases separate out. “Capture NCGs” means the facility will remove and collect these gases instead of simply venting them into the atmosphere. One of the main gases captured is carbon dioxide (CO₂).
In this fertiliser plant’s design, that CO₂ becomes a feedstock: in ammonia/fertiliser manufacturing, CO₂ can be used in processes such as urea synthesis (where ammonia and CO₂ react to form urea) or in other nitrogen-based fertiliser lines. Using CO₂ internally reduces raw-material cost and emissions.
So the advantage: You turn what might have been a waste gas (or emission) from geothermal extraction into a useful chemical input, increasing efficiency, reducing environmental impact and lowering reliance on externally sourced CO₂.
Kenya’s agriculture is a huge part of the economy and livelihood base. Fertiliser is a major expense and vulnerability because most is imported. Controlling local production helps stabilise input costs and reduce exposure to global shocks (e.g., price spikes when major fertiliser-exporting countries restrict supply)
A “green” fertiliser plant powered by geothermal is both low-carbon and innovative. That aligns with global climate goals and draws investment interest. Kenya can signal that it is not just a beneficiary of renewables but a value-added producer. If Kenya succeeds, it becomes a model for other African countries with geothermal potential (e.g., Ethiopia, Djibouti). That strengthens Kenya’s position in the regional renewable-industrial ecosystem.
