Daewoo top bidder for $1.3 bln Kenya power plant

NAIROBI/SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea's Daewoo International has been named the preferred bidder to build a power plant in Kenya worth up to $1.3 billion.

The tender, issued about a year ago, is for a 600 megawatt (MW) coal-fired plant in Mombasa, said the managing director for Keyan electricity producer KenGen.

Daewoo said in a statement that the project was to build a 300 MW coal-fired plant, which may be extended to 600 MW.

"After all the considerations, we have awarded (Daewoo) this contract. We will be calling them for negotiations in terms of forming a JV partnership with them," Eddie Njoroge told a news conference after KenGen's annual general meeting in Nairobi.

He said KenGen and Daewoo would have to wait 14 days, required under procurement rules, to sign a deal.

The tender requires the formation of a joint venture company, with the winning bidder holding a 60 percent stake and KenGen the rest, Njoroge said.

Kengen could then raise its stake up to 49 percent, he added.

Daewoo said in a statement it had been chosen over such bidders as Sithe Global and Aldwych.

Njoroge said the aim was to have the power plant operational in the next three or four years although it was dependent on the negotiations with Daewoo.