Nairobi consumes half of Kenya Power’s energy supply

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A power transmission sub-station. New data released by Kenya Power shows that Nairobi consumed 3,507 Gigawatt Hours (GWh) last year, being 56.2 per cent of the total power consumption compared to 55.8 per cent in the previous year. Photo/FILE 

By GEORGE NGIGI

In Summary

• New data released by Kenya Power shows that Nairobi consumed 3,507 Gigawatt Hours (GWh) last year, being 56.2 per cent of the total power consumption compared to 55.8 per cent in the previous year.
• Analysts say uneven growth in consumption of electricity, especially in times of economic expansion, means the benefits of such growth is accruing to only a segment of the population.
• The number of Kenya Power customers in Nairobi crossed the one million mark to stand at 1,042,216 while the other three regions (Mount Kenya, Coast and Western) have a total number of 835,202 customers.

Nairobi accounted for more than half of Kenya Power’s electricity sales last year, reflecting the capital city’s economic dominance over the rest of the country.

New data released by the power distribution company shows that Nairobi consumed 3,507 Gigawatt Hours (GWh) last year, being 56.2 per cent of the total power consumption compared to 55.8 per cent in the previous year.

The heavy concentration of power consumption by Nairobi indicates inequality in the country’s economic development, which has partly been attributed to the previous centralised system of government that has guided sharing of resources since independence.

The devolved system of government under the new Constitution has raised hopes of addressing the economic imbalance, but analysts have said there is need to offer incentives to pull private investors to the counties.

“Nairobi is so big, it is hard for the economy to trickle down especially for foreign investors who want to set up where there is infrastructure,” said economist Dr X.N. Iraki.

Some counties have already crafted incentives to attract investors, but others are still trying to settle into office and have not announced any development plans.

Power consumption in an area is often an indicator of the number of electrical equipment plugged to the national grid— including industrial machinery — pointing to economic output.

It may also be the result of increased use of home appliances such as TV sets and refrigerators that point to improvement in household incomes and rising standards of living.

Analysts say uneven growth in consumption of electricity, especially in times of economic expansion, means the benefits of such growth is accruing to only a segment of the population.

In the past, the government has used free land policy and tax concessions to woo investors to satellite towns, but the incentives have failed to reduce concentration of wealth and investment in Nairobi.

The government plans to use the free primary school laptop project to spread electricity connection to all schools, which could in a way address economic exclusion in rural areas.

READ: State to light schools ahead of laptops launch

The number of Kenya Power customers in Nairobi crossed the one million mark to stand at 1,042,216 while the other three regions (Mount Kenya, Coast and Western) have a total number of 835,202 customers.

Kenya Power has divided the country in four regions being Nairobi, Mount Kenya, Coast and Western.

Mt Kenya region is the least consumer having used up 539 GWh. This is lower than the consumption in Coast, which has less consumers, indicating more consumption per capita at the Coast.