Kenya Power gets tough on late bill payers after profit plunges

A woman walks her child to school past high voltage electrical pylons on the outskirts of Kenya's capital Nairobi. [Photo: Reuters]

NAIROBI- Kenya Power Co said on Friday it will be much tougher on chasing unpaid bills after its provisions for bad debts surged in the financial year through June, sending its full-year profit down 60 percent.

Kenya’s main power distributor said it increased its bad debt provisions seven-fold to 6.08 billion shillings ($59 million) in the financial year that ended June 30 after it adopted a new accounting standard.