Cost of Electricity in Kenya: The cost of electricity in Kenya is set to rise significantly. This is after the Energy regulator approved higher electricity prices by Kenya Power which has been pushing to hike the charges by at least 20 percent.
According to a report that appeared in the Business Daily on Thursday, the energy regulator had agreed to offer the utility a tariff hike.
However, the report said, the higher tariffs will be revealed in the coming weeks and subjected to public participation before they take effect through a Kenya Gazette announcement.
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“If implemented, the higher tariffs will aid Kenya Power’s turnaround efforts, but hurt household budgets and raise the already high cost of doing business in Kenya. Kenya Power wants to increase the consumption charge for usage of less than 100 kilowatts per month to Sh. 12.50 a unit, up from the current Sh. 10,” the report said. “The charge for consuming above 100 units will rise to Sh. 19.53 a unit from the current Sh. 15.80 in the event that the regulator approves the proposed tariffs.”
EPRA cut the tariff from November 2018 to July 2019 to Sh. 10 per kilowatt hour from Sh. 15.80 for customers who use below 100 kilowatts per month.
According to the report, Kenya Power has been seeking high charges as one of its strategies to reverse its dwindling fortunes. The national power provider has issued profit warnings for three years in a row. It has also not paid dividend, and its share trading price on the Nairobi Securities Exchange has fallen sharply.
“Kenya Power this year issued its third profit warning in a row, citing reduced electricity consumption due to coronavirus control measures and rising cost of buying wholesale power from firms like KenGen. The alert means the utility’s net earnings will decline by at least 25 percent of last year’s profit of Sh. 262 million — which was the worst in 16 years. The utility firm also last paid a dividend in 2017,” the report sad.