Microsoft-G42’s 1-Gigawatt Kenya Data Center Stalls as Water Scarcity Fears Deepen
Updated
Updated · Al Jazeera English · Aug 24
Microsoft-G42’s 1-Gigawatt Kenya Data Center Stalls as Water Scarcity Fears Deepen
1 articles · Updated · Al Jazeera English · Aug 24
Summary
May 2026 brought a halt to the proposed Microsoft-G42 data center in Olkaria after power-capacity concerns, leaving the project at the design stage, KenGen said.
The stalled plan is drawing sharper scrutiny because the companies have not disclosed project-specific water use for the facility, which was announced in 2024 under a $1 billion Kenya digital investment package.
Lake Naivasha communities say water shortages are already worsening, with residents relying on vendors and livestock walking kilometres as drought, groundwater pressure and competing demand intensify.
Existing industrial use shows the scale of local abstraction: KenGen’s assessment recorded 195,165 cubic metres taken from Lake Naivasha in July 2023, including 153,918 cubic metres for commercial operations at Olkaria.
Kenya’s broader water stress frames the dispute: FAO estimates freshwater availability at 527 cubic metres per person—below the 1,000-cubic-metre scarcity threshold—and sees it falling to about 475 by 2030.