Energy Siren https://energysiren.co.ke/ Independent reporting on power, renewables, oil and gas, grids and energy access across Kenya and the wider African continent. en-ke Sat, 15 Aug 2026 16:34:32 GMT What you actually pay for on a Kenyan electricity bill https://energysiren.co.ke/kenya-electricity-tariff-explained https://energysiren.co.ke/kenya-electricity-tariff-explained Thu, 13 Aug 2026 06:00:00 GMT Policy & Regulation Achieng Otieno A domestic power bill is at least six separate charges stacked on top of each other. Here is what each line does, and which ones move month to month. How geothermal power works in the Rift Valley https://energysiren.co.ke/how-geothermal-power-works-in-the-rift-valley https://energysiren.co.ke/how-geothermal-power-works-in-the-rift-valley Tue, 11 Aug 2026 06:00:00 GMT Renewables Achieng Otieno Steam from two kilometres underground now carries a large share of Kenya's baseload. The geology behind it is specific, and it is not easily copied. What a mini-grid actually costs to run https://energysiren.co.ke/what-a-mini-grid-actually-costs-to-run https://energysiren.co.ke/what-a-mini-grid-actually-costs-to-run Sat, 08 Aug 2026 06:00:00 GMT Off-Grid & Access Halima Yusuf Building a village mini-grid is the easy part. The operating economics decide whether it is still generating power in year seven. Pay-as-you-go solar, explained as a lending business https://energysiren.co.ke/pay-as-you-go-solar-explained https://energysiren.co.ke/pay-as-you-go-solar-explained Wed, 05 Aug 2026 06:00:00 GMT Off-Grid & Access Brian Kimani The panels are the visible part. What made solar home systems spread across East Africa was consumer credit with a remote off-switch. How cross-border power trade actually works in East Africa https://energysiren.co.ke/how-cross-border-power-trade-works-in-east-africa https://energysiren.co.ke/how-cross-border-power-trade-works-in-east-africa Thu, 30 Jul 2026 06:00:00 GMT Power & Grid Achieng Otieno A transmission line between two countries is a hedge against each country's own weather. That is the whole argument, and it is a strong one. LPG versus charcoal: what drives the cooking fuel shift https://energysiren.co.ke/lpg-versus-charcoal-the-cooking-fuel-shift https://energysiren.co.ke/lpg-versus-charcoal-the-cooking-fuel-shift Fri, 24 Jul 2026 06:00:00 GMT Oil & Gas Halima Yusuf Households do not switch cooking fuel because of a health campaign. They switch when the cash flow of switching stops being punishing. Where electricity disappears between plant and plug https://energysiren.co.ke/where-electricity-disappears-between-plant-and-plug https://energysiren.co.ke/where-electricity-disappears-between-plant-and-plug Sat, 18 Jul 2026 06:00:00 GMT Power & Grid Achieng Otieno Every utility loses part of what it generates. Separating the physics from the billing failures is the first step in fixing either. Why electric boda bodas swap batteries instead of charging them https://energysiren.co.ke/electric-boda-bodas-and-the-battery-swap-model https://energysiren.co.ke/electric-boda-bodas-and-the-battery-swap-model Sat, 11 Jul 2026 06:00:00 GMT E-Mobility Brian Kimani For a rider who earns by the trip, charging time is lost income. Battery swapping is an answer to that specific problem. How an African power project gets financed https://energysiren.co.ke/how-an-african-power-project-gets-financed https://energysiren.co.ke/how-an-african-power-project-gets-financed Sat, 27 Jun 2026 06:00:00 GMT Finance & Deals Brian Kimani Between an idea and a working plant sit a power purchase agreement, a pile of due diligence and about four years. Here is the sequence. Carbon credits, explained for energy projects https://energysiren.co.ke/carbon-credits-explained-for-energy-projects https://energysiren.co.ke/carbon-credits-explained-for-energy-projects Fri, 19 Jun 2026 06:00:00 GMT Climate Halima Yusuf A credit is a claim that something did not happen. Whether that claim is worth anything depends entirely on the counterfactual behind it.