By NJIRAINI MUCHIRA
Kenya Power could lose the monopoly of electricity distribution if county governments cut links with the company blamed for unending woes in the power sector.
Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Director General Kaburu Mwirichia yesterday said county governments can independently distribute electricity within their jurisdictions if they so wish, which could ultimately cut link with Kenya Power.
Besides, Mwirichia added that although Kenya Power is a monopoly in electricity distribution, ERC is ready to license more investors interested in the power distribution business to compete with the company. “County governments will have powers to distribute electricity. This is well guaranteed in the constitution,” he said.
He added the right for county governments to distribute electricity is among the issues that will be included in the new Energy Policy and Energy Bill currently under preparation to be in tandem with the new Constitution.
The revelation that Kenya Power could lose the distribution monopoly marks a turning point for a company blamed for all the wrongs in the power sector including blackouts, outages, and limited access and rising prices of electricity mainly due to inefficiencies.
The move, however, sets the stage for confrontation between county governments that are set to come into being after the General Elections and Kenya Power, which owns all the distribution facilities across the country.
Speaking on the State of the energy sector, Mwirichia said Sh7.2 billion is required in generation, transmission and distribution facilities in the next four years to meet increasing demand that is expanding at an average of eight per cent per annum.
A total of Sh4.6 billion is being invested in generation projects, Sh1.9 billion transmission facilities and Sh566 million in distribution network. Demand, which is being driven by economic growth, high population growth, accelerated connectivity and energy requirements by Vision 2030 flagship projects, is anticipated to hit 11.2 per cent per year in the future. “We are currently undertaking a system study to understand power needs in the country and investments required,” said Mwirichia.
