The government has announced that the long-awaited power transmission project aimed at connecting Marsabit County to the national electricity grid will be completed in December 2025.
While appearing before the Senate on Wednesday, June 4, Energy Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi assured the public that the Ksh612.7 million investment would start to reap benefits by the end of the year.
“The government has taken deliberate steps to ensure that affirmative action is implemented. We want to ensure that Marsabit County is connected to the national grid for the first time since independence,” Wandayi said.
Wandayi was responding to a query by Murang'a Senator Joe Nyutu, who pressed the CS about the affirmative action being taken by the government to ensure power is connected to marginalised regions in the country.
According to the CS, the connection will be achieved through the construction of a 45-kilometre transmission line from the Angalani Wind Power firm to Angalani town.
He added, “This is a project that we are able to commit to; come December this year, it shall be complete and we shall commission it. That will enable Angalani town and its environs to enjoy quality, affordable and reliable power from the national grid,” he added.
Wandayi's remarks came at a time when the Ministry of Energy came under legal scrutiny over the handling of energy project approvals in Marsabit, which is the second largest county in the country.
Weeks earlier, the High Court issued a directive requiring the ministry to release a list of all approved projects in the county, setting May 10 as the last date after a standoff between two firms.
Marsabit has for long been excluded from major energy infrastructure, with the county mostly relying on off-grid and diesel-powered systems. The new project is expected to improve energy access and thus boost economic prospects in the region.
In February, President William Ruto also resorted to decisive action to advance power access in Northern Kenya as he announced plans to shut down a power plant in Lodwar within a year.
Speaking during the contract signing for improved electricity access via mini-grids and solar in Nairobi, Ruto revealed that plans were underway to shut down a diesel-powered grid in Lodwar as part of the government's commitment to achieving a 100 per cent clean energy grid.
The president confirmed that the government has already initiated plans to hybridise diesel with a solar photovoltaic (PV) system, and preparations are underway to install eight megawatts of solar power in the northern regions of the country, which experience prolonged sunny spells.
