Commercial and Industrial Captive Solar: Financing Demands (April 2024)
Increased electricity tariffs in Kenya

In 2023, Kenyan grid customers suffered three national-level blackouts, the worst on record, each lasting over 8 hours. Throughout the year, these customers experienced over 115 hours of power outages. Compounding the problem, electricity tariffs increased by over 11% for commercial and industrial (C&I) customers as diesel prices for thermal power generation soared. These challenges severely disrupted businesses, resulting in higher operating costs.

In response to rising electricity costs and the need for reliability, C&I customers (including malls, hotels, petrol stations, and steel manufacturers) and institutions (such as schools and universities) turned to captive power generation—on-site energy generation primarily intended for own consumption. This trend led to a 60% increase in captive power generation in 2023, with the total capacity reaching 449.5 MW—12.18% of (3,689.5 MW) the country’s total installed capacity.

Over the past five years, C&I businesses have recurrently suffered losses due to power outages, estimated at 5.4% of

This story is only available to Premium subscribers Subscribe or sign in to finish reading

Not ready to subscribe? Register to read a selection of free stories

Sammy Jamar

Sammy Jamar

Read Latest

Telecommunications Deal Briefing: Cygnum Capital, FMO fund Mawingu’s $15 million Habari acquisition

PREMIUM - 28 NOV 2024

Consumer Goods & Services Deal Briefing: Tana Africa Capital exits Flipper International School

PREMIUM - 26 NOV 2024

Financial Services Deal Briefing: PAIDF sells infrastructure assets to Harith InfraCo for $360 million

PREMIUM - 25 NOV 2024

Weekly Macro Update: November 18-22, 2024

PREMIUM - 25 NOV 2024

Download our mobile app for a more immersive reading experience

Scan QR code
mobile download