Kenya Power gets Sh940m to improve infrastructure

Kenya Power’s effort to upgrade its infrastructure has received a critical boost with an advancement of Sh940 million ($10m) from a local commercial bank.

The finance, which is part of a five-year syndicated loan, was advanced by United Bank for Africa (UBA)-Kenya and will be deployed by the national electricity distributor in upgrading and expansion of power infrastructure in readiness to evacuate the planned additional 5,000 MW to be generated by 2017. The loan will go a long way in replacing the utility’s aged lines with those with larger capacity, upgrading its existing sub-stations, building of 37 new sub-stations and installing new equipment on the power grid

. Kenya Power Managing Director Ben Chumo noted that without adequate, competitively-priced and reliable electricity supply, the country’s development vision and all its aspirations will only remain in blueprint. “Timely completion of these capital-intensive projects is critical in ensuring long term viability of Kenya Power business as well as in making the country an attractive investment destination,” he said. UBA Kenya Chief Executive Isaac Mwige recognised the importance of such projects to the country’s long-term prosperity and reiterated the financial institution’s commitment to the betterment of the lives of Kenyans. -Dominic Omondi