Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) on Monday released new measures to reduce electricity-related accidents.
Through the Energy (Electricity Incident and Accident Reporting) Regulations 2024, the authority aims to create more awareness of the incidents and hold those responsible accountable.
"As we continue to see growth in the number of connections to the grid and investments in the electricity sector, these regulations provide an anticipatory approach to safety for everyone involved," he stated.
In the proposed regulations, EPRA will incentivise all licensees' authority to import, export, generate, transmit, distribute and supply electrical energy in the country.
The incentive is meant to allow the licensees to invest in preventive measures and employee training to mitigate risks and enhance overall safety standards.
Another measure proposed by the Authority is that all licensees will be required to report any incident within 48 hours or face the set penalties.
Additionally, EPRA has proposed that all licensees will need to have insurance coverage for liability that may be incurred due to safety incidents, This is meant to address the issue of compensation and post-accident response.
"To ensure there is transparency and adequate access to this information, they will be required to publish the standard procedure for raising claims on their websites. This will provide relief to accident and incident victims as guided by the regulations,' Kiptoo added.
Further, Kiptoo explained that through the proposed regulations, an end-to-end mechanism shall be established to collect information and reports to the Authority and give room to companies to carry out their investigations.
Through this, the Authority will be able to identify and address potential hazards before they escalate into more significant threats.
EPRA will also be required to improve safety practices and infrastructure maintenance which will be necessary when dealing with common and emerging causes of accidents.
Conclusively, Kiptoo emphasised that EPRA will set up an online system that will make it easy for licensees to report such incidents.
He urged stakeholders in the sector to accept the regulations and endorse their implementation. Kiptoo remarked that the regulations affected all Kenyans who have a right to a safe and healthy environment.
