"High Court to make ruling about Marsabit wind power project"

The High Court in Meru is set to make a ruling early next month that will determine the fate of an ambitious Sh75 billion wind power project in Marsabit County. In the case before Justice Peter Njoroge, Marsabit residents accuse Lake Turkana Wind Power Limited of acquiring 150,000 acres of their ancestral land for the project without following due process. The plant is expected to generate 300 megawatts.

...While Marsabit residents say they were not involved in the land acquisition, the power company says everything was done above board. Attempts to settle the matter out of court have failed...In an affidavit sworn by Mr Seye, they argue that by acquisition of the land, the camel corridor used to access Lake Turkana was disrupted. He further says that cultural activities by the Rendille people that used to be undertaken at the suit property have now been rendered impossible...

In his replying affidavit, Turkana Wind Power Ltd chief operations officer Nicholas Taypor said due process was followed when the suit property was acquired. He said the Rendille were not occupying the land when they took it over.