Kenya Power Loses Transmission Power Line to Some Regions

• The transmission power line loss is due to critical maintenance works undertaken on a section of the line earlier in the day.
• The loss in transmission affected power in Ruiru, Kabete, Uthiru, Fedha, Tassia, Kamakis and surrounding areas.

Kenya Power announced yesterday that it had lost its transmission power line serving Western, Nyanza and Rift Valley regions. In a statement, the power company stated that the power line was down due to unforeseen circumstances. This arose from critical maintenance works undertaken on a section of the line earlier in the day. The energy utility firm made this announcement hours after losing four supply lines serving the Nairobi Metropolitan region. 

The loss in transmission affected power in Ruiru, Kabete, Uthiru, Fedha, Tassia, Kamakis and surrounding areas. The statement read in part, “This has led to controlled supply interruption affecting some customers in parts of Eldoret, Kisumu, Kakamega, Bomet, Kericho, and the surrounding areas. Restoration works are in progress. We apologise for any inconvenience caused by this disruption.”

Recall that on December 13, President William Ruto’s Cabinet directed the Ministry of Energy to unbundle transmission lines so that power failure in one part of the nation does not affect the entire country. Furthermore, the Cabinet resolved to construct the Bomet-Narok line to deal with the overloading of transmission lines that cause outages. They expect the construction to cost Ksh37.5 billion, which the Africa Development Bank will fund partly.

However, Kenya Power did not reveal if the outage in the three regions resulted from the proposed unbundling. Other areas that will experience scheduled blackouts include the North Rift Region, covering parts of Turkana County.