The cost of electricity in Kenya is set to scale down following the cabinet’s approval of a proposal by the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum to withdraw charges imposed on electricity generation, transmission and distribution by Local Authorities and Government Agencies.

More often than not,  a good number of local authorities usually impose charges on Kenya power for hosting transmission lines within their territories and this cost is often passed on to the consumer resulting in higher power bills that Kenyans have no choice but to pay.

KENGEN PASS ON CHARGES

For instance, the Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA) recently slapped the Kenya Power Generating Company (KENGEN) with a Sh630 Million demand for payment for producing more than two megawatts of electricity from Hydro resources. Soon after, the energy tribunal gave KenGen a green light for the firm to recover that cost through the monthly power bill paid by consumers.

The Consumer’s Federation of Kenya (COFEK) whose responsibility is to protect consumers against exploitation, went ahead to file a petition in court in order to stop KenGen from recovering the Sh630 million owed to the government agency (WARMA) from consumers.

ELECTRICITY BELOW 10 CENTS/KWH

Following the approval by the cabinet to withdraw the charges imposed on the power plants by government agencies, the numerous charges that are usually passed down to the consumers will be a thing of the past and the high cost of electricity will be lowered thus making it more affordable to a huge population who up to now cannot afford electricity.

According to the cabinet, low electricity charges would also accelerate the rate of industrialization as it would lower the cost of production hence making the country a preferred investment destination.

If the proposal is effected, the cost of electricity could drop below 10 cents/kwh.