150,000 Customers To Benefit From Last Mile Connectivity

Kenya Power targets to connect 150,000 customers to the national grid under the Last Mile Connectivity Project (LMCP) Phase VI that is funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB).

The customers comprising households and MSMEs will be spread across 45 counties except Nairobi and Mombasa.

“The Government of Kenya has received financing from the African Development Bank (AfDB) toward the cost of the implementation of the sixth phase of the Last Mile Connectivity Project.

The funding will go a long way to boost the ongoing national electrification efforts and accelerate the attainment of universal access to electricity by the year 2030,” said Kenya Power’s Managing Director and CEO, Dr. Joseph Siror.

Last Mile Connectivity Project from Africa Development Bank, with the continental lender having funded Phase I and III of the project, where a total of 536,077 customers were connected.

In addition to the targeted customers, the CEO said that the latest phase of the LMCP will also entail system reinforcements as well as grid extensions.

“This will involve construction and refurbishment of 13 substations (construction of three 33/11 kV new substations, refurbishment and upgrade of three 33/11 kV substations and construction of seven new 33 kV switching stations),” he added

The project will also entail the construction of 211 kilometres and 14 kilometres of kV and 11 kV distribution lines, respectively, to boost the social infrastructure to serve education, healthcare, water, and sanitation.

Additionally, 650 kilometres of 33 kV lines and 6,798 kilometres of low-voltage network will be constructed to facilitate the last mile connections.

Siror confirmed that the LMCP has invited bids for project consultancy services. The consultant will undertake technical designs as well as environmental and social performance audits. Further, they will provide support to the company through procurement and supervision of construction works.

Since the inception of the LMCP in 2015, so far Kenya Power has connected 746,867 customers to the national grid.

The company is currently implementing the fourth and fifth phases of the LMCP, which seek to connect an additional 280,000 and 11,000 new customers to the grid, respectively.

LMCP has also been funded by various lenders, including the Government of Kenya, the World Bank, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the French Development Agency (AFD), the European Union (EU), and the European Investment Bank (EIB).