Page 12 - AfrElec Week 02 2022
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AfrElec POLICY AfrElec
Kenya experiences national
power outage due to collapsed
transmission line towers
KENYA KENYA experienced a nationwide power out- customers for the inconvenience caused.”
age on Tuesday (11 January) morning bue to Power supply was restored by the afternoon
the collapse of towers in the high-voltage Kiam- in most parts of Kenya, following repairs to the
bere-Embakasi electricity transmission line. high voltage power line connecting the capital to
“We have lost power supply due to collapsed the Kiambere hydroelectric dam.
towers on the Kiambere-Embakkasi transmis- Kiambere is one of the generation units of the
sion line at 10:45 this morning,” Kenya Power Seven Forks hydro complex on the Tana River,
and Lighting Company (KPLC) said, noting which flows into the Indian Ocean. The trans-
engineers were carrying out repairs and hope to mission line from Kiambere hydro’s substation is
restore power shortly. linked to Embakkasi in Nairobi, the nerve centre
“An update on the restoration progress will be for dispatching electricity nationwide.
issued in due course, we wish to apologize to our
Manufacturers applaud Kenya’s
15% power tariff cut
KENYA THE Kenya Association of Manufacturers we must keep an eye on the urgent implementa-
(KAM) has welcomed a 15% reduction in power tion of the second phase of the 15% reduction in
tariffs effected by the country’s Energy Ministry. power tariffs as announced by the President,” he
Group chairman Mucai Kunyiha said the said in press release.
reduction was a significant milestone in boost- Manufacturers in the past raised concerns
ing manufacturing and investments in the East over the high price of electricity impacting the
African country. overall cost of production, attributed to expen-
“Manufacturers shall enjoy a cost reduc- sive purchase power agreements (PPAs).
tion of between KES2.67 ($0.0235) – KES 3.64 Other factors include high cost of fuel, mul-
($0.0321) per unit of electricity, depending on tiple levies imposed on electricity bills, VAT and
their respective tariff and consumption levels. fuel cost adjustment, depressed demand growth
The cost of power shall further reduce for indus- and inefficiency of transmission system despite
tries that meet the time of use tariff threshold as increased power generation capacity.
gazetted,” he said. Kunyiha said the 15% reduction was appro-
The Ministry of Energy effected the power priate coming at a time when the economy is
tariff reduction on 7 January following a direc- experiencing impact of COVID-19, including
tive issued by President Uhuru Kenyatta in rising costs, supply challenges and lower pur-
December 2021. The 15% reduction is half of a chasing power.
30% reduction he promised Kenyans. “We support the government’s efforts to
Kunyiha said KAM’s members will continue address the fuel cost component that is one
to engage the government with other stakehold- of the key factors in energy costs, the expen-
ers towards achieving overall sustainable stable sive petro-thermal generation, whose cost is
policies on cost, availability and reliability of greatly affected by fluctuating global prices and
power to promote local industries. exchange rates,” he said.
“To fully gain from the benefits of this move,
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