Preliminary Roadmap for Industrial Decarbonization – Kenya

Kenya’s industrial sector plays a pivotal role in the country’s socio-economic development. It accounts for 17% of the country’s GDP and employs a significant fraction of Kenya’s labour force. The strong regulatory reforms, improved ease of access and the rich mineral resources in the country indicate towards strong growth prospects in the coming years. The sector consumes nearly 50% of the total electricity generated in the country but contributes only 3.5% of the total GHG emissions of Kenya. Nearly 90% of Kenya’s electricity is generated from renewables, which includes a significant portion of hydro and geothermal technologies.

GHG emissions from the industrial sector include process related and energy related emissions. In 2020, cement production was the leading cause of the process related emissions while electricity generation was the main contributor to the energy related emissions. As the manufacturing sector expands, fuel related emissions, currently low, are expected to grow as are the energy needs. The iron and steel and chemicals sub-sectors, currently consume small fractions of energy and have low GHG emissions due to limited production capacity, however, these are expected to grow in the coming years.

The objective of this report is to analyse the industrial sector of Kenya and develop a preliminary decarbonization roadmap by:

  • Understanding the industrial landscape and identifying key industrial sub-sectors
  • Identifying emissions pathways and decarbonization potential of key industrial sub-sectors
  • Proposing a set of actions, specific activities to enable low-carbon industrial growth.
  • Defining the time horizon for implementation of proposed actions and activities in the short, medium, and long term.

In this study, the current situation and the future landscape of the Kenyan industrial sector were mapped through both literature and data analysis. Stakeholder inputs helped identifying the barriers and bottlenecks that limit the adoption of alternatives and potential opportunities. Based on these, a series of public policy recommendations, development instruments, technologies, and regulations capable of enabling decarbonization in the short, medium, and long term have been suggested.

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