Backed by the World Bank, the project will be implemented under the second phase of the Last Mile Connectivity Project in order to improve electricity supply quality for accelerated development of the country.
The World Bank will fund $257.5m for the Kenya Electricity Modernization Program (KEMP) project while Kenya Power (KPCL) and the Rural Electrification Authority will contribute $3.5m and $1m, respectively.
The project scope includes installation of automatic metering infrastructure for KPLC’s large and medium businesses as well as launch of Live Line Maintenance program to reduce power interruptions during operational maintenance for customers.
Kenya Energy and Petroleum acting cabinet secretary Henry Rotich said: "KEMP funding will help us finalize implementation of Kenya Power’s smart metering solution for approximately 6,000 large scale customers and over 40,000 medium scale businesses which is expected to eliminate the need for regular meter reading and enhance our revenue collection."
The project also includes modernization of Kenya Power’s electricity management system, the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA), to enhance power distribution network flexibility.
World Bank country director Diarietou Gaye said: "Modern and reliable electricity will also reduce the duration of outages and reduce dependence of the business sector on costly standby generators, thus enabling them to operate more consistently.
