Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja on Thursday revealed that his administration had struck a Ksh50 billion Public-Private Partnership (PPP) deal with a Chinese firm for the construction of Kenya's first waste to energy Plant in Dandora.
Sakaja who met officials from the Chinese firm at City Hall explained that all the necessary groundwork relating to the project had been done with the works expected to begin in due course.
“Met with China National Electric Engineering Co. President Wu Guisheng and our teams earlier today at City Hall. We shortly commence the construction of Kenya's first Waste to Energy Plant in Dandora, a 50 Billion PPP awarded to CNEEC,” Sakaja communicated via his official channels.
The plant is expected to produce 45 Mega Watts of electricity from solid waste which is considered a game changer and arguably the most sustainable way to handle the waste that keeps piling up at the Dandora dumpsite.
Media reports have in the past indicated that the project will be developed in a single phase with the operator expected to enter into commercial operations in 2026.
Sprawling over 30 acres just outside of Nairobi, the Dandora dumpsite is East Africa's biggest landfill site and among the largest in the world.
The announcement comes after the Land Court on May 29 threw out a petition challenging the project.
Presiding over the matter, Justice Anne Amollo ruled that the parties challenging the project had filed their case prematurely.
She observed that there was no proof whatsoever that the plant would violate the right to a clean and healthy environment.
The petitioner, a private citizen, argued in his suit that the ambitious project would negatively impact residents of Dandora and Nairobi at large.
The judge also pointed out that work on the particular project had yet to begin, and the only movement was to settle on the company that would undertake the project.
Nairobi County Government, through its attorney, wanted the case thrown out, insisting that no contracts had been signed yet.
