Page 9 - AfrElec Week 08 2023

AfrElec TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION AfrElec

Kenya partners with Africa50, PowerGrid

in $298mn transmission project

KENYA KENYA has entered into a public-private part- 72 km Kisumu-Musaga transmission line. The
nership (PPP) agreement to construct two project will also incorporate associated infra-
high-voltage transmission lines in order to structure such as electricity substations,” said
improve power system reliability and boost the Treasury.
access in the Western part of the country. In the PPP model, the private firms will sign
The National Treasury revealed in its 2023 long-term contracts with electricity distributor
Budget Policy Statement that Kenya has part- Kenya Power to earn wheeling revenue from
nered with Pan-African investment firm electricity transmitted through their power
Africa50 and Power Grid Corporation of India lines.
(PowerGrid) to implement power transmis- PowerGrid boasts of extensive experience in In Kenya, the
sion lines covering 237 kilometres at a cost of electricity transmission owing to the fact that it
$298mn. transmits about 50% of the total power gener- project will be the
The projects have been in the pipeline since ated in India on its transmission network. The
2019 when Africa50 and PowerGrid signed a company owns and operates about 161,490 km first independent
cooperation agreement to partner in the devel- of transmission lines and 248 sub-stations.
opment, finance, construction and operation of In Kenya, the project will be the first inde- power
the transmission lines. pendent power transmission and comes at a time transmission.
Under the agreement, Africa50 will oversee the government is betting on private capital to
project structuring and financing with Pow- undertake big-money infrastructure projects
erGrid handling the technical and operational amid a cash crunch at the exchequer.
implementation of the projects. The World Bank reckons the East Afri-
The partnership was designed to catalyze can nation has a financing gap of at least 90%
project development for the initial set of pilot amounting to $5.9bn to fund new power trans-
projects based on a bankable PPP model in line mission projects between 2013 and 2030, an
with the Kenyan government’s vision to meet the investment the government cannot meet alone.
demands for electricity access in the country. The fully state-owned Kenya Electricity
“The government of Kenya in partnership Transmission Company is currently the sole firm
with Africa50 through a PPP framework intends charged with building, maintaining and operat-
to pilot transmission line PPPs by way of the ing high-voltage transmission infrastructure
financing, design, construction, operation, and within the country. It primarily relies on state
maintenance of the 400 KV, 165 kilometer Loo- funding and wheeling revenue amounting to
suk-Lessos transmission line and the 220 KV $20.6mn annually to fund its operations.™

Week 08 22•February•2023 www. NEWSBASE .com P9