Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) has picked an insider, Ronoh Kibet Charles, as its next managing director and chief executive to take charge of the country's largest power producer when Eng. Peter Waweru Njenga retires.

In a statement released on Saturday, October 24, 2026, the KenGen board said Mr Kibet, currently the company's General Manager for Commercial Services, will take office on February 1, 2027. The roughly three-month gap is meant to allow an orderly handover from Mr Njenga, who is retiring.

The board said the appointment followed a competitive recruitment process.

A commercial and geothermal specialist

Mr Kibet brings more than 17 years of experience in geothermal development, project delivery and commercial strategy, according to the company. In his current role, he oversees energy markets, investments, new business and partnerships, marketing and corporate communication, and sustainability.

Before becoming General Manager for Commercial Services in July 2025, he served as Manager for New Business and Partnerships from June 2022. The board credits him with driving renewable energy projects, growing KenGen's international consultancy work and advancing the Olkaria Green Energy Park, the company's plan to attract industries to set up next to its geothermal fields in Naivasha and use power directly from the source.

He holds a bachelor's degree in telecommunication and information engineering and a master's in project management, both from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. He is a certified Project Management Professional and SAP Project System consultant, and has completed an organisational leadership programme at Harvard Business School as well as executive courses at IESE Business School in Spain, the University of Cape Town and Strathmore Business School.

He is a member of the Engineers Board of Kenya, the Institution of Engineers of Kenya and the Geothermal Association of Kenya, and holds the Order of the Grand Warrior (OGW).

Njenga's record

Mr Njenga, a former General Manager for Infrastructure Development at Kenya Power, took over at KenGen in August 2023 after a period in which Abraham Serem held the job in an acting capacity, Citizen Digital reported.

The board praised his tenure, noting that KenGen posted a profit after tax of Sh10.48 billion in the 2025 financial year and expanded its geothermal consultancy business abroad, including assignments in Eswatini. The board, management and staff thanked him for his leadership and wished him well in retirement.

What awaits the new CEO

Mr Kibet will inherit a company that controls more than 60 per cent of Kenya's installed generation capacity. KenGen's plants have a combined capacity of 1,786 megawatts, made up of 826MW of hydro, 754MW of geothermal, 25.5MW of wind and the rest thermal, with over 90 per cent coming from renewable sources.

His appointment comes as the listed, majority state-owned company seeks to grow beyond electricity generation into areas such as consultancy and green industrial parks, while the country's demand for power continues to rise. The board said it was confident he would strengthen performance, develop staff and push forward the company's growth and innovation agenda.

Photos: KenGen (Ronoh Kibet Charles); Macabe5387/Wikimedia Commons (Olkaria V Geothermal Power Station, CC BY-SA 4.0)