Masinga Farm

500 Acres

FACTS & FEATURES

General

Land Owner

Tana and Athi Rivers Development Authority(TARDA).

Site Availability

Accepting EOIs

TARDA has owned the site for 50 years. A dam, part of the "7 forks" hydroelectric project, was completed in the late 70s, with a power plant operational by 1981. Today, five dams in the project supply sustainable energy. The reservoir, once filled, spans 120 km², with a capacity of 1.56 billion m³, but drought has reduced water levels, limiting power production.

From 1989 to 1996, TARDA ran an irrigated farming project, that mainly produced French beans, okra and eggplants.  Now, TARDA seeks new development opportunities on the land surrounding the reservoir, including agricultural leases, solar power, and tree plantations. Masinga Farm is located 90 km North-East from Nairobi city. The site is accessible via well-maintained asphalt roads.

View the site's EOI here.

View the Masinga farm LCI sitemap here.

Masinga farm is suitable for a small-scale investor willing to develop the local economy through food production for the Kenyan market based on an out-grower scheme.

Investors can lease portions of the land ranging from 50 acres to the entire 1000 acres, depending on their needs and investment plans.

Soil analysis shows high pH and calcium. Nitrogen, organic matter, potassium and phosphorus are low but can be compensated by an adequate fertilization plan. The rest of the nutrients are well balanced. This kind of soil is suitable for many types of crops.

 

Annual rainfall in the area stands between 400 mm and 800 mm with rainy seasons in March-April and November-December. High average temperatures and evapotranspiration confirm the site's semi-arid nature. Despite this, the climate is suitable for agriculture with proper irrigation.

Masinga Farm's water source is the Tana River, Kenya's longest river at approximately 1,000 km, with a catchment area of 95,000 km² (16% of Kenya's territory). The water quality is suitable for irrigation.

Access to Masinga Farm is well-established due to the dam's operations, which required secure routes to the power plant. From Thika, it takes about two hours to cover the 110 km journey via the well-maintained A3 and B7 asphalt roads. The final 15 km stretch to the farm is on a good, though narrow, asphalt road with minimal traffic, though wide vehicles may struggle to pass each other. Thika is connected to Nairobi by the A2 highway, a 45 km drive that takes less than an hour, making the total travel time from Nairobi about 3 hours and 45 minutes. The farm itself is accessible by a 3 km gravel road from the dam.

A power grid is not available on site. However, a 40 MW power plant is located at the Masinga dam, 3 km away from the site meaning that power is available near the site.

LOCATION

Masinga, Embu County
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