* CIF approves initial $46.4 mln of Kenya's total $70 mln request

* Aims to unlock at least $243 in other funding

* To help stabilise grid amid widespread blackouts

LONDON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Multilateral lender Climate Investment Funds (CIF) is backing a plan that could see nearly $300 million invested to help Kenya integrate more renewable energy into its grid and meet a goal of using 100% clean energy by 2030, CIF said on Wednesday.

An initial allocation by CIF of $46.4 million on generous terms is expected to draw in at least an extra $243 million from the public and private sectors, including through the African Development Bank and the World Bank Group, it said.

The funding from CIF is largely in the form of a loan, with $5 million in the form of a grant, a spokesperson said. Kenya originally requested $70 million in a plan approved by CIF's Trust Fund Committee.

While the share of renewables in Kenya's electricity output is already 90% - among the highest rates in the world - the country still struggles to manage its grid and has faced numerous blackouts in recent years.

The need for a more stable system is particularly acute given Kenya's plan to ramp up the use of renewable electricity in transport and cooking, and increase the use of wind and solar energy to 30% from 19% by 2030.

To help, the investment plan will see the money used to improve dispatch, grid stability, and flexibility, and help underpin future investment in storage technologies including pumped hydropower.

"CIF's concessional funding will be instrumental in getting power to Kenyan consumers where and when they need it," said Luis Tineo, CIF's interim chief executive.

Kenya is one of 10 countries to have been selected under the Renewable Energy Integration programme, one element of a global push to provide more climate finance funding to developing countries as part of efforts to cap global warming.

"The plan will assist Kenya in her ambition to achieve 100 percent clean energy in the power system by 2030 and place it well on the trajectory to achieving Net Zero by 2050," said Alex Wachira, Principal Secretary at Kenya's energy department. (Reporting by Simon Jessop Editing by Mark Potter)