Energy - Kibera and other Slums the New Saudi Arabia

Kibera is an informal settlement in the heart of Nairobi City Center the size of Central
Park in New York City. Population estimates range from 700,000 to over 1 million
people living in this space. Population growth estimates project a doubling in population
by the year 2020.

Being an informal settlement with such a large population, infrastructure is very limited
and there is very little if any urban planning. This results in huge challenges in sewer and
garbage disposal.

Currently, there are youth groups involved in a project called “Taka ni Pato” that collect
household garbage and use it to make compost. The compost is sold for modest amounts
of money in the ksh 10 to ksh 30 ( $.14 to $43 ) per kilo to farmers. Any plastics
collected are sold to companies who recycle the material.

The sewer infrastructure constitutes of:
* Pit Latrines: These are owned and operated by landlords, local NGOs or CBOs
that allow Kibera residents to use them for a fee.
* Bushes along the River: For those residents who cannot afford the modest fee
($.07), they use the bushes along the river at night.
* Septic Tanks: Some more formal buildings have septic tanks that serve as
reservoirs for sewage.

We propose a comprehensive waste to energy solution for Kibera. The goal would be to
provide portable toilets (Porta-Jons) spread out throughout Kibera where residents would
have the opportunity to use them for free.

We would develop hand driven equipment for emptying the toilets at specific intervals
depending on volume of usage. In the USA, Port-a-jons used on construction sites are
emptied by modified trucks that ensure sanitation for the worker. The waste collected
from these would be delivered in a biogas digester that we would use to generate methane
gas. Using this methane gas and reciprocating engines, we would generate electricity to
feed into the grid. While the current feed-in-tariffs are not attractive on their own, by
leveraging the community infrastructure component, carbon credits and monetizing the
compost, the project would effectively generate positive cash flows and be sustainable.

We propose movable toilets as the government is in the process of upgrading the slums.
That said, we anticipate the process to be slow and therefore feel that there is large
enough a population base that will continue to need this service.

Implementation:

For the project to be successful, we must work with the community, its leaders, existing
solution providers and the government.

Already trained and formed groups such as the “Taka Ni Pato” group would work on the
emptying and cleaning of the toilets in exchange for income pegged on volume,
cleanliness of their Port-a-jons and other incentives. By incorporating energy generation,
the youth will have an additional revenue stream.

We must not deprive existing solution providers of their revenue. So a careful analysis of
how best to incorporate them in the project or help generate alternate revenues will be
key to the success of our project.

Revenue Steams:

Fee from the Govt. for sanitation services:
While we will be providing a key service to the community, we anticipate a long drawn
out discussion with government on if they will pay a fee for our services and what that
fee will be. So while this is a possibility, it shouldn’t be required in establishing the
viability of this effort.

Electricity generation through biogas

Using Biogas digesters, we will generate biogas to power engines that generate
electricity. Kenya currently has a feed in tariff of $.07/kWh for biomass energy
generation.

Biogas sales

Whenever possible, we will site our digesters in proximity to biogas off takers such as
industries that can use it for boilers or other uses that need thermal power. Currently,
such industries utilize diesel or Heavy fuel oil.

Compost sales

Due to the inclusion of human waste in the composting, we will need to identify non food
farmers who are willing to purchase the compost.


Biodiesel Production

Alternatively, we are also looking at growing jathropa plantations for biofuels. Farmers
near our plantations will also be invited to grow the same on an “out grower”
arrangement. Since we will be targeting marginal agricultural lands, revenues from
growing jathropa will essentially exceed the current low to no yield on such lands for the
farmers. This model has the added possibility of generating employment for the biodiesel
plant while increasing the income of the small farmers. Additional opportunities exist to
monetize the carbon offsets through jathropa propagation.

Electricity generation through biomass gasification:

For the 15% to 20% trash that will not be suitable for biogas digestion including plastics,
tires etc, we will utilize biomass gasification to generate electricity. While we would get a
better value for this through gasification to fuel, the technology isn’t as well developed.