- Kenya Power will ration electricity supply due to the unavailability of the North Rift transmission power line.
- The regions affected include Eldoret, Nandi, Bungoma, Kakamega, Kisumu, Busia, Nakuru, Nyandarua, Kericho, Bomet, Kisii, and Homabay counties.
Kenya Power has announced that there will be power rationing in 12 counties based in Western, Nyanza and Rift Valley. In a statement released on Sunday, January 4, Kenya Power noted that the load shedding was due to the unavailability of the North Rift transmission power line. According to the statement, a section of the transmission power line in North Rift is currently unavailable due to unforeseen circumstances arising from critical reinforcement works undertaken on a section of the line earlier.
The regions that will be affected include Eldoret, Nandi, Bungoma, Kakamega, Kisumu, Busia, Nakuru, and Nyandarua. Others include Kericho, Bomet, Kisii, and Homabay counties. Kenya Power disclosed that residents of the area will endure intermittent power outages for two hours at a time. This was the second time in less than a month that Kenya was experiencing outages due to the failure of the North Rift power transmission line. Recall that on January 7, Kenya Power announced that it had lost the line due to critical maintenance ongoing on the section.
Kenya is in the process of unbundling a power transmission line in a project that will cost the taxpayer Ksh37 billion. The Africa Development Bank, one of Kenya’s most prominent financiers of development and infrastructure projects, funds the project. According to a December 2023 Cabinet resolution, the unbundling of transmission lines will ensure that the failure of one line does not cause a national blackout. Also, Kenya is exploring a power-sharing plan with Tanzania and other East African countries where they will tap electricity for each nation from one shared grid.