Kenyans connected to the grid hit 9.8 million in December 2024, Epra says
However, the record of new customer connections is a decline compared to the same period in the previous financial year, which recorded a total of 260,257 new connections.
An additional 194,654 new customers were connected to the national electricity grid in the six months to December 2024, according to the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (Epra).
In its latest biannual sector report for the 2024/25 Financial Year, the regulator says the addition brings the total grid connected customers to 9,852,423.
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However, the record of new customer connections is a decline compared to the same period in the previous financial year, which recorded a total of 260,257 new connections.
At 9.8 million, the state seems on track towards its plan to connect at least 10 million customers to the electricity grid by the end of this year.
Principal Secretary in the State Department for Energy Alex Wachira in January highlighted the country’s ambition to connect more than 25,000 Kenyans yearly, as it moves toward attaining 100 per cent electricity connectivity by 2030.
He noted that the government is hoping to cross the 10 million mark by the end of this year.
Kenya has taken substantial steps to increase access to electricity over the past two decades, in line with the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of attaining universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy by 2030.
Official estimates by the International Energy Agency (IEA) show the country's electrification rate has doubled since 2013, reaching 75 per cent in 2022.
Beyond energy regulation and connectivity, Kenya is also a leader in developing a diversified power generation mix, as more than 90 per cent of its electricity is sourced from hydroelectric, geothermal and other renewable energy sources.
In terms of utilisation, Epra says the period under review saw a general increase in energy utilisation in all regions compared to a similar period in the previous financial year.
“The period’s consumption grew from 5,205.79GWh to 5,484.54 GWh,” the report reads.
Nairobi region remained the leading consumer, utilising 2,415.44 GWh, accounting for 44.04 per cent of total electrical energy utilisation in the country.
This is an improvement from 2,293.95GWh of electrical energy utilised in a similar period in the previous financial year.
The Coast region ranked second in energy consumption, utilising 988.21 GWh, which constituted 18.02 per cent of the country's total energy consumption.
This is also an improvement from 930.05 GWh utilised in the first half of the previous financial year.
The Rift Valley region utilised 759.42 GWh as compared to 705.48 GWh utilised in a similar period in the previous financial year. The region accounted for 13.85 per cent of the total consumption.
North eastern and Mt Kenya regions accounted for 10.69 and 6.45 per cent of the overall consumption, utilising 586.09 GWh and 353.90 GWh, respectively.
Western Kenya and South Nyanza regions recorded the lowest electricity consumption at 280.78 GWh and 110.69 GWh, accounting for 5.12 per cent and 1.84 per cent of total consumption, respectively.
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