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{
    "id": 1378781,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1378781/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 54,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Wamatinga",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13582,
        "legal_name": "Wahome Wamatinga",
        "slug": "wahome-wamatinga"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, I beg to move the following Motion- THAT, the Senate adopts the Report of the Standing Committee on Energy on the inquiry into the high cost of electricity in the country laid on the Table of the Senate on Wednesday, 27th September 2023. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Committee on Energy undertook an inquiry whereby we looked at the distribution, generation and consumption of electricity in Kenya. According to the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KeBS) and Economic Survey of 2023, about 87.5 per cent of all electricity generated in this country is from a renewable source. Indeed, a good performance in comparison with other countries, especially in the wake of economic climate change and the need to align the goals of renewable energies with consumption. The Committee looked into the arrangements for independent power generation in the country. We realised that the Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) being one of the producers of electricity, generates about 70 per cent of the energy that we consume whereas the private power producers produce about 30 per cent. However, the 30 per cent takes about 70 per cent of the cost that we pay the reason being that most of these independent power producers were conceived at a time when the country needed to breach the gap between the demand and the supply. In most cases, this was done to the disadvantage of the consumers with an arrangement that is famously known as the take or pay. This leaves us in a disadvantaged position because whether we degenerate or consume, we still end up paying. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the country has made big strides in terms of generation and exploring the possibility of using renewable energy. However, the infrastructure that has been put in place has not been in alignment with the development such that the distribution is not even in all parts of the country. As a result, the Committee found it good to recommend the establishment of several distribution lines, especially from the wind generation in Marsabit County down to Suswa. We also came to realise that we lack redundant power lines. Therefore, blackouts that have been lasting at times up to 24 hours have been witnessed in the country in the last few months. This can be solved if the Government invests in multiple distribution lines so that power can be dispatched. Again, overreliance on one substation in Suswa has become a major impediment in this country. As a result, we need to relook at the distribution of power. That is why the Committee recommended that Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (KETRACO) and Kenya Power must be disengaged so that one will have the responsibility of supplying power while the other one will have the responsibility of having administrative control. The Committee also looked at the existing independent power producers’ licences and the possibility of them negotiating so that they can reduce the cost of power. We The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
}