By Samwel Ouma
National electricity distributor Kenya Power on Thursday signed 11 agreements with contractors to pave way for full implementation of the Last Mile Connectivity Project in January 2015 with the aim of enhancing affordable power supply and connection and ensure universal access of power by 2020.
The Company’s Managing Director and CEO, Dr Ben Chumo, said the African Development Bank (AfDB) being the financier of the project recently concluded approval procedures giving the power utility consent to engage with contractors who won bids to implement the USD150 million (Shs.15 billion) project.
Dr Chumo said the contracts sign off signals commencement of the initial phase of the project countrywide that will connect approximately 314,000 households to electricity and providing electricity access to an additional 1.5 million Kenyans.
He said: “A total of 5,320 existing distribution transformers will be utilized to the maximum through extension of low voltage network which entails construction of 12,000 kilometers of low voltage distribution lines. Customers within 600 meter transformer radius will be connected at a subsidized cost of Sh15,000 under the programme.”
The project aims at extending connection to over one million people every year and reducing the cost of power supply from the initial Sh35,000 to Sh15,000 especially to the country’s rural and low income areas.
Dr.Chumo stated that he expects that 70 per cent of Kenyans will have access to electricity by 2017, translating to more productivity and creating more jobs opportunities in the rural areas that will absorb the idle human resource capacity and make them productive. Currently, only 35 percent of Kenyan households are connected to electricity.
The Last Mile Connectivity Project introduced a new approach at how electricity connections are
done. Whereas Kenyans used to make applications with long procedures in the past, now Kenya Power and the Rural Electrification Authority come knocking on doors asking Kenyans to allow them to connect their households to electricity.
National electricity distributor Kenya Power on Thursday signed 11 agreements with contractors to pave way for full implementation of the Last Mile Connectivity Project in January 2015 with the aim of enhancing affordable power supply and connection and ensure universal access of power by 2020.
The Company’s Managing Director and CEO, Dr Ben Chumo, said the African Development Bank (AfDB) being the financier of the project recently concluded approval procedures giving the power utility consent to engage with contractors who won bids to implement the USD150 million (Shs.15 billion) project.
Dr Chumo said the contracts sign off signals commencement of the initial phase of the project countrywide that will connect approximately 314,000 households to electricity and providing electricity access to an additional 1.5 million Kenyans.
He said: “A total of 5,320 existing distribution transformers will be utilized to the maximum through extension of low voltage network which entails construction of 12,000 kilometers of low voltage distribution lines. Customers within 600 meter transformer radius will be connected at a subsidized cost of Sh15,000 under the programme.”
The project aims at extending connection to over one million people every year and reducing the cost of power supply from the initial Sh35,000 to Sh15,000 especially to the country’s rural and low income areas.
Dr.Chumo stated that he expects that 70 per cent of Kenyans will have access to electricity by 2017, translating to more productivity and creating more jobs opportunities in the rural areas that will absorb the idle human resource capacity and make them productive. Currently, only 35 percent of Kenyan households are connected to electricity.
The Last Mile Connectivity Project introduced a new approach at how electricity connections are
done. Whereas Kenyans used to make applications with long procedures in the past, now Kenya Power and the Rural Electrification Authority come knocking on doors asking Kenyans to allow them to connect their households to electricity.
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