County Government of Laikipia

The much-awaited adequate and reliable power in Rumuruti town and the surrounding environment has started taking shape after work on the remaining 16.8km underground cable kicked off.

Already the overhead transmission line stretching 62 km is complete. This happened in November last year. Also complete are the Nanyuki and Rumuruti substations.

The completion of the underground Cable section and energizing of both substations within is expected to be finalized by end of May 2023. The design work has already begun after the signing of the contract in March 2022.

According to the Director, of Mining and Natural Resources, Chris Kimanga, the reason why the project has taken longer to complete is that it was not anticipated there will be anywhere the contractor would install underground cables. However, because of security reasons, the area around Laikipia Airbase necessitated underground cable installation.

In the initial contract, KETRACO was to do just the overhead cables but because of the security issues, the working for the underground cables brought the delays.said Mr. Kimanga.

The director says that sourcing for another contractor to do the work also took time, hence more delays.

Once the underground line is in place, there will be a complete grid from Nanyuki to Rumuruti. This is good news as the government has already set the Special Economic Zone(EPZ) in Rumuruti.

Investors are expected to flock to the region following reliable sources of energy. A reliable source of energy plays a vital role in ensuring the success of established businesses and those in their early stages.

Further, Kenergy is on a 40MW solar project to provide electricity at a cheap rate of 8 USD/kWh. Therefore, the investors will have confidence in having affordable and reliable sources of energy.

The County Government of Laikipia has started the Electricity Rebate Program that sees local manufacturers get a refund of 30 percent on their monthly energy bills, up to Ksh. 100,000 and a 50 percent refund on annual bills with a cap of 50,000.

The devolved unit is promoting local manufacturers to make Laikipia a manufacturing hub. This is being done through such efforts as developing market centers into Smart Towns, handholding local SMEs, and partnering with local banks to provide subsidized loans at 7.5 percent.