Thursday, July 31, 2014

Jamii Bora to finance electricity connection


Kenya Power personnel replace a transformer in Mombasa. PHOTO | FILE
Kenya Power personnel replace a transformer in Mombasa. PHOTO | FILE  NATION MEDIA GROUP
By IMMACULATE KARAMBU
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Kenya Power and Jamii Bora Bank have signed an agreement that will see new applicants financed to get connected to electricity.

 
Through the deal, Kenya Power hopes to increase the number of new connections in an effort to realise the government’s target of more than 70 per cent access to electricity in the next five years.
The loan will cater for all categories of customers, including those applying for the single-phase meters commonly used in households, and three-phase ones for commercial establishments.
“With a loan facility, our customers are able to connect power. We look forward to Kenyans taking it up so that we can focus on the rural areas where income is a challenge,” Kenya Power chief executive officer Ben Chumo said.
He was speaking in Nairobi on Wednesday during the signing of the deal between the two institutions.
Kenya Power did not disclose the number of new customers targeted under this arrangement. But according to Mr Chumo, some 453,000 were connected last year.
Jamii Bora CEO Samuel Kimani said all the people to be connected using the loan would get prepaid meters to avert the risk of defaulting.
SUBJECT TO REVISION
The bank will offer the loan at an interest rate of 16 per cent to both existing and new account holders, “which will be subject to revision depending on market trends”.
This is not the first time the power company is partnering with a financial institution to provide loans to fund new power connections.
Last week, the utility said it had also sealed deals with Equity Bank and National Bank for the financing power supply connections.
Kenya Power charges a minimum of Sh35,000 per new client for a single-phase meter for applicants living within a 600-metre radius from its transformer.

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