The Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (KETRACO) has entered into a Kes11.6 billion (80.7 million Euros) French financing deal to construct a National System Control Center (NSCC) in Nairobi in a plan that aims at overhauling the current power control system to check outages.

Ketraco said this move aims at modernising the country’s electricity transmission infrastructure and building towards a balanced electricity demand and supply, ensuring grid stability and integrating various power sources, including variable renewable energy.

The country has been experiencing intermittent electricity outages, which are partly attributable to underinvestment in the nation’s grid system. 

In the latest incident, homes and businesses were thrown into darkness in August, with power outages hitting Nairobi, Rift Valley and Western regions hard. Earlier in December 2023, players in the manufacturers and aviation sector suffered losses as the country was hit by yet another massive electricity blackout. 

While globally Kenya has positioned itself as a model in the adoption of renewable energy, a move that has yielded increased generation, the country's power transmission lines have remained poor. This challenge has seen some areas continue experiencing excess power even as others suffer undersupply.

According to Ketraco, the Kes12 billion project will be financed jointly by the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the Ministry of Finance of France. The plant, which will be constructed in Embakasi, will also involve the construction of a backup system at Ketraco’s Suswa substation. The utility said this strategy aims at managing asset performance and monitoring the grid.

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Renewable energy

“We are building a state-of-the-art National System Control Centre in Embakasi that is essential for the efficient operation of the grid,” Ketraco Managing Director, Dr. John Mativo, said in a statement.

“The national grid will continue to grow in size and capacity within Kenya, three regional high voltage interconnectors connected to neighboring countries, and more and more variable renewable energy added in the energy mix making it paramount for Kentraco to construct a new facility.”

The new electricity distribution hub is expected to replace the current national control centre which is based on Juja, on the outskirts of Nairobi. It will serve as the central command center for managing the national grid and ease the burden on the existing NSCC.

The system control center serves as the hub from which power from various generation sources is distributed to consumers across the country and dispatch is guided by an order that considers factors such as cost and demand.

Kenya’s energy has grown and is currently over 2,200MW due to increased demand by industries and retail consumers despite the frequent nationwide blackouts that disrupts businesses. Some of these  are due to failure in the national grid which are  occasioned by system disturbance on the transmission network. 

Furthermore, the power company assured that the centre, which is expected to be complete in thirty six months time, will provide enhanced visibility, a better working environment, and enhanced capabilities in addition to addressing other limitations that face the current control centre.

Following a massive blackout in December 2023, the government announced that it approved the construction of a new electricity transmission line, funded by up to $420 million from the African Development Bank and Japan. Former Energy CS Davis Chirchir said this project is expected to be completed within 20 months.

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