March sees record power outages across Kenya - EPRA report
While the overall average duration and frequency of outages slightly improved compared to 2024, many customers still endured prolonged interruptions, especially during the rainy season.
Kenyans experienced the highest number of power outages in March this year, with frequent blackouts disrupting households and businesses, according to a report by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA).
The report shows that while the overall average duration and frequency of outages slightly improved compared to 2024, many customers still endured prolonged interruptions, especially during the rainy season.
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The report highlights that the System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI), which measures the total time a customer experiences electricity interruptions, stood at 9.42 hours per customer on average for the financial year ending June 2025. This is a modest improvement from 10.14 hours recorded in the year ending June 2024.
“March recorded the highest total interruption durations at 12.44 hours, likely due to multiple breakdowns caused by the onset of the long rains, which often bring down trees onto power lines,” reads the report.
In contrast, June 2025 experienced the lowest total interruption durations at 7.31 hours, attributed to cold and dry weather conditions.
Over the last five years, SAIDI has consistently exceeded both EPRA’s prescribed threshold and regional benchmarks. The lowest five-year SAIDI was 8.373 hours in 2022/23, while the highest was 10.14 hours in 2023/24.
The System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI), which measures the number of outages a customer experiences, also reflected weather-related fluctuations. Kenyans faced an average of 3.57 outages per month in the year under review, down from 3.96 outages per month in 2023/24.
March 2025 recorded the most frequent outages at 4.592 interruptions per month, while June 2025 had the fewest at 2.484 outages.
“Rainy months saw more interruptions, while dry months experienced fewer,” reads the report.
Despite the improvement, SAIFI remains above the EPRA benchmark of 1.63 outages per month and the regional benchmark of 1.10 outages per month, highlighting persistent challenges in power system reliability.
Data from the last five years show a general rise in outage frequency since 2020, peaking at 3.96 interruptions per month in 2023/24.
The first reduction in this trend occurred in the year ending June 2025, signalling a slight but notable improvement in electricity supply reliability.
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