US based technology firm Google has developed cold feet on a deal that would have seen the company buy a 12.5% stake stake in the Lake Turkana wind farm.
The financier of the wind farm Vestas now says that it is holding talks with other potential buyers.
“The Alphabet Inc’s unit has scrapped its intentions for the purchase due to certain delays on the project, mainly related to its transmission line,” said Vestas in a statement to Reuters.
The Lake Turkana wind farm, worth around KES 70 billion (USD 696m/EUR 637.5m), was initially scheduled for completion in 2017 but its commissioning was delayed due to the protracted construction of the 428-km (266-mile) transmission link to the power grid. It was officially opened in July 2019 and is anticipated to generate enough power for about 330,000 local homes.
The Lake Turkana Wind Power consortium comprises KP&P Africa B.V. and Aldwych International as co-developers; Industrial Fund for Developing Countries, Vestas, Finnish Fund for Industrial Cooperation Ltd, Norwegian Investment Fund for Developing Countries and Sandpiper Limited.
The project had orginally been due to start generating power in June 2011 but faced delays securing financing and construction didn’t start until 2014.
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