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{
    "id": 1472216,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1472216/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 338,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Sifuna",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13599,
        "legal_name": "Sifuna Edwin Watenya",
        "slug": "sifuna-edwin-watenya"
    },
    "content": "If you look at Clause 2 of the Amendment Bill, I have proposed that an amendment be inserted in the Energy Act immediately after Section 134. This will be new Section 134A that requires a generating entity to enter into an energy purchase agreement to sell electrical energy to a licensed entity specified in the Third Schedule. Then we move to what the generating entity must consider when entering into such an agreement. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, we have introduced the principles of public finance enshrined under Article 201 of the Constitution into the decision to enter into an energy purchase agreement. These principles are openness and accountability, public participation in financial matters, good governance to ensure public funds are used prudently and responsibly, and sustainability. This is as a direct result of the feedback that we got during the sittings of the Committee to inquire why these electricity bills are high and Kenyans are complaining that something needs to be done. As you saw, there was a clear manifestation of opaqueness in how people determine whether we need to enter into fresh Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). Therefore, we have introduced a requirement that prior to procurement of electrical power, there has to be a feasibility study conducted to identify whether there is enough demand for electricity purchase that cannot be met by the existing production. We were told that if you look at your power bill, there is something called a capacity charge. The capacity charge is charged on every consumer of electricity for all the capacity that has been contracted by Kenya Power and Lightening Company (KPLC) to supply power. That capacity means that every time you issue a license to a power producer, as long as that capacity to supply is there, we pay for it whether electricity is dispatched from their generating units or not. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, this is what the Committee felt and it is what informed my amendment: Before you give any other person a contract on purchase of power so to set up any new plants, a feasibility study must be conducted to tell Kenyans that the existing capacity cannot meet the requirements at the particular moment. If you look at Section 134(A)(3)(B), there is also a requirement to ensure the process of procurement of electrical energy complies with the procedures set out in the Public Procurement and Disposals (PPD) Act. What we have seen in the past is that there is no openness in how these people who hold these power purchase agreements ended up as suppliers to KPLC. The public is seldom informed and there is no information at all on when they are being procured and on what terms. It requires an inquiry of the House such as the one that we conducted for us to even know the terms that they have been given. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, we have introduced that amendment to ensure greater transparency. Then, as was noted by the Committee, it does not make any sense that you have cheaper available power yet the person responsible for dispatching electricity at KPLC decides to go for more expensive sources of electricity, such as those thermal generators. Evidence was given here. I have alluded to it by Lake Turkana Wind Power themselves. We got to see their PPA ourselves. If a certain threshold of uptake is reached, we could enjoy a high discount of 50 per cent but as of the time when they were appearing before us, that threshold had The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only.A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and Audio Services,Senate."
}