Kenya power shares continue to tumble

NSE staff monitor trading.

The price of Kenya Power shares hit a record low on Monday when the electricity distributor shed 4 per cent to close at over-a-decade low of Sh6.05.

The Board last week replaced many in senior management positions (in an acting capacity for the next three months), following corruption and abuse of office allegations against prior occupants.

The company had returned a profit of Sh42 billion in the year ended June 2017, has lost 33.5 per cent of its share price over the last one year as reports of overcharging customers, costly litigation and allegations of corruption have led to the arrest of its top managers.

The power transmission firm has had a tough year at the bourse touching a low of Sh6.30 in June 12 and Sh6.00 on Monday as compared to a high of 11.80 in August 28 last year.

The decline has come hard and fast from December when KPLC was facing serious allegations for overcharging customers.

Subsequent revelations have indicated that the power transmission firm has been embroiled in faulty tendering and a Sh10 billion bill hangs over the company over litigation by Lawyer Apollo Mboya.

Meanwhile, market correction saw Express Kenya and Unga Group register dips of 5.0 per cent and 4.5 per cent respectively, owing to a flop in their respective takeover bids.

At Express Kenya, Shareholders refused to sell their stake in Express Kenya to the CEO Hector where less than ten per cent of shareholders in the transport and logistics firm agreed to the buyout which was not enough to clinch the 75 per cent required margin.

At Unga Group, shareholders with only 16 per cent stake agreed to the deal and Seaboard opted to take their stake to increase its shareholding to 18.9 per cent nipping the takeover in the bud.