Nuclear power in Kenya is no longer a question of “if,” but of “when.” And that “when” seems to be drawing much closer. The government is seeking funding to begin construction by 2027, with operations expected to start in 2034. Meanwhile, far from the Watamu coast where the project was halted, preparations are underway on Lake Victoria to move forward.

That’s right, Kenya has decided that nuclear power can no longer wait.
After years of studies, opposition, delays, and changes of course—including the one that saved the Watamu coast and the Mida Creek ecosystem—the project for the country’s first nuclear power plant is entering its most concrete phase: the funding phase.
The government is in fact seeking funding for a 2,000 MW plant with an estimated cost of approximately 500 billion Kenyan shillings, with the goal of starting construction by 2027 and beginning energy production in 2034, as announced by President Ruto.
No longer theory, then. But engineering, diplomacy, and above all, finance.

President Ruto stated that investments in nuclear power generation are expected to reduce current electricity rates and, furthermore, if sufficient funding is secured, the project will be accompanied by major infrastructure modernization efforts, including roads, water supply networks, healthcare facilities, schools, and telecommunications.
The chosen site, as is already known, is Lwanda Kotieno, in Siaya County, on the shores of Lake Victoria. A choice that marked a turning point following the strong protests in Kilifi County, where the project was initially planned, in Uyombo, not far from Watamu.
It’s a story well-remembered in these parts: tour operators, environmentalists, and local communities united against a plant perceived as incompatible with an economy based on the sea, fishing, and ecotourism.
A battle won, at least geographically.
But the project was never truly called into question. It was merely relocated.
And now, in Siaya, things are moving forward.
The government aims to engage international partners, investors, and nuclear industry operators to support an infrastructure expected to produce up to 1,000 megawatts of energy, helping to reduce the energy deficit and support the country’s industrialization.
Energy Minister Opiyo Wandayi has reiterated the commitment to transparency and safety. Behind the official statements, however, lies a complex journey.
Kenya still needs to consolidate its regulatory framework, train specialized personnel, define waste management, and, above all, convince international investors to bet on an expensive, long-term project.
The national nuclear program is currently in the second phase of the path established by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the one that lays the groundwork for actual construction.
A delicate transition, where ambitions must come to terms with reality.
And reality, in Kenya, often unfolds at a different pace than what’s announced.
Meanwhile, on the shores of Lake Victoria, the project is presented as a promise of development: infrastructure, jobs, training.
A possible future, which, however—as always happens with nuclear power—also brings with it serious questions.
Watamu, from afar, watches.
It has already had its say. Or rather: it has avoided it.
And while the country races toward the atom, among the mangroves of Mida Creek a familiar feeling lingers: that of having been, for once, in the right place at the right time.
Or perhaps simply loud enough to be heard.
And that is no small thing, in a Kenya that races toward the future at the same speed with which it forgets its fears.