Kenya Power in talks for Sh4.5 billion funding

Kenya Power will receive a Sh4.5 billion boost from the International Finance Corporation to shore up its five-year investment programme.

The funds are to be released to the firm by the end of next month, but final approval by the IFC board is pending.

When contacted, the power utility firm acknowledged that it was in discussion with the IFC for the loan, but added that the discussions were at formative stages.

“There are still certain conditions we have to meet, but the talks are under way,” the firm said.

The plan involves about 250,000 new connections to the national grid to at least two million by the end of 2012.

Currently, Kenya Power has about 1.7 million connections to electricity around the country.

The funds are part of a robust Sh58 billion investment, which the company needs in five years to achieve a desired connectivity rate.

The rest of the funds are supposed to come from other multilateral organisations, the government and the firm itself.

Early in the year, the firm conducted a successful rights issue that was oversubscribed by more than Sh300 million.

It had sought Sh9.52 billion from the capital markets to be used to refurbish and upgrade power systems.