At the end of his three-day trip to Africa, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) spoke out in favor of significantly greater use of geothermal energy as an energy source in Germany. “Geothermal energy is possible in many more places in Germany than many people think today,” he said on Saturday when he visited Africa’s largest geothermal plant in Kenya. The potential is also considered to be very large in Germany. Therefore, all geodata and information would now be collected “so that the courage grows” to exploit these energy sources, some of which lie kilometers deep in the earth.
After Ethiopia, Kenya was the second and final stop on the Chancellor’s three-day trip to Africa. Finally, he drove 120 kilometers north-west from the capital, Nairobi, to Hell’s Gate National Park, which is dotted with volcanoes and on the edge of which lie the geothermal power plants. At the East African Rift Valley, which was formed millions of years ago when the Arabian tectonic plate separated from the African tectonic plate, there are numerous hydrothermal vents that can be used to generate heat and electricity.
Kenya gets half of its electricity from geothermal energy
Kenya gets almost 50 percent of its electricity from it, but only uses about two percent of the amount that Germany, which is much more industrialized, needs. Germany can learn from Kenya when it comes to using its natural resources, said Scholz. “We don’t have any volcanic regions like this one here in Germany, but we do have many areas and landscapes in which geothermal energy has good prerequisites.”
Shortly before his trip to Africa, the Chancellor opened a geothermal plant in Schwerin that uses water pumped up from a depth of 1,300 meters to generate energy. According to the German Geothermal Association, there are already 42 such systems in Germany.
Drilling up to several kilometers deep
Unlike sun and wind, geothermal heat can be used 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In deep geothermal energy, it is obtained by drilling down to several kilometers – the deeper you go, the warmer it gets. According to a study by several large German research centers, more than a quarter of Germany’s annual heat requirements could be covered with geothermal energy.
According to earlier information from the Federal Ministry of Research, at least 100 additional geothermal projects are to be initiated by 2030. “The potential is rated very high,” said Scholz. “With modern technology, we also have the opportunity to better determine whether drilling will be successful.”
Production of hydrogen is to be supported in the future
Germany’s commitment to green energy projects in Kenya – especially in the field of geothermal energy – has a long tradition. The state development bank KfW and the Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), among others, have been investing in such projects for more than 20 years. Germany was also involved in the construction of the Olkaria geothermal plant visited by Scholz, investing millions.
In the future, Germany also wants to provide more support for the development of a hydrogen economy in Kenya. It is currently still questionable whether hydrogen imports from Kenya will also result. For Kenya, however, the green hydrogen, which is produced with electricity generated from renewable energy, offers great potential. Above all, this includes the production of climate-friendly fertilizers for agriculture.
Industry and Welthungerhilfe satisfied with the trip
During his visit to Kenya, Scholz had also advocated the immigration of skilled workers to Germany and had previously called for the African Union to be included in the G20 of the largest economic powers in Ethiopia. Business and aid organizations reacted positively to the results.
“It is remarkable how aggressively the Kenyan side is promoting giving well-qualified specialists a chance in Germany,” said Christoph Kannengiesser, general manager of the German-African Business Association, the German Press Agency. These could help to close the demographic gap in the German labor market. The relocation of IT services to “Silicon Savannah”, as the Kenyan capital Nairobi is called in reference to the high-tech location Silicon Valley in the USA, is an interesting option.
Welthungerhilfe was also satisfied. “We would like to see more such encounters on an equal footing, which not only express the crises and conflicts but also the great potential of these populous countries on the Horn of Africa,” said Bettina Beuttner, spokeswoman for Welthungerhilfe, to the dpa.
