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Article

24 Feb 2016

Author:
George Obulutsa, Reuters (UK)

Kenya: Macquarie and Old Mutual backed wind power project cancelled due to land & health disputes

"Kenyan wind power project cancelled due to land disputes", 23 Feb 2016

A $144 million Kenyan wind power project…has been cancelled due to opposition from local landowners and farmers, developer Kinangop Wind Park said…Kinangop's…project in…Kenya was due to come online by mid-2015 but progress was hobbled by disputes with residents over compensation for land. Last year, local farmers also opposed the project, saying they would be forced to sell their land. They also said the turbines could cause health problems, which the developer denied. Kinangop in a statement…said protests by locals had made it difficult for workers to build the wind farm. "Due to the consequent material delay, project funds have been depleted and the project can no longer be completed by the shareholders," it said…Kinangop's main investor is Africa Infrastructure Investment Fund II which is advised by African Infrastructure Investment Managers, a joint venture between Macquarie and Old Mutual. The rest of the stake is held by…Norfund. General Electric had won the contract to supply the plant's turbines.