Kenya Power has reported a steady decline in electricity costs over the past year, a trend that may soon reverse due to an ongoing dispute with the Nairobi County Government.
During a meeting with the Kenya Editors Guild in Nairobi on Tuesday, March 4, Kenya Power‘s Managing Director, Joseph Siror, explained that the decrease in electricity prices was largely due to the strengthening of the Kenyan shilling against the dollar, which has led to lower pass-through costs for consumers.
Siror revealed that the base tariff for electricity had fallen from Ksh19.04 per unit in 2023 to sh17.94 per unit in 2024.
He added that this reduction was further supported by a revision in the electricity tariff in April 2023, which introduced a three-year tariff plan designed to lower unit costs each year, starting in July.
“This has contributed to the decline in the base energy cost, with the base tariff dropping from Sh 19.04 per unit in 2023 to Sh 17.94 in 2024,” Siror said.
However, Siror raised concerns about the potential impact of including wayleave charges in electricity bills.
He warned that this could increase the cost of electricity by up to 30%.
“Kenya Power manages over 319,000 kilometers of power lines across all 47 counties.
If wayleave charges were to be introduced at Ksh200 per meter, it would cost KSh63.8 billion annually,” Siror explained.
“This would represent roughly 30% of the energy sector’s revenue requirements, which would need to be recovered from electricity bills.
The result would be that electricity would become unaffordable for many Kenyans.”
The proposal to include wayleave charges stems from a public feud between Kenya Power and the Nairobi County Government, which escalated over the past two weeks.
The conflict began when Kenya Power disconnected the county’s offices from the power grid due to outstanding debt.
In response, the Nairobi County Government, led by Governor Johnson Sakaja, retaliated by dumping garbage, clamping vehicles, and demanding that Kenya Power pay for wayleave fees.
Sakaja later claimed that the utility company owed the county sh4.9 billion in wayleave charges, further intensifying the dispute.
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