Power transmission firm Ketraco sets aside Sh41m to compensate landowners

A power transmission line under construction. Ketraco has set aside Sh41 million to compensate owners of land where the Loiyangalani-Suswa 400KV transmission line will pass. FILE PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The transmission line will extend north from Suswa to the Lake Turkana Wind Power site near Loyangalani, through Naivasha, Gilgil, Nyahururu, Rumuruti, Maralal and Baragoi.
  • Project engineer Joseph Munyaka said it was a strategic deal for the country and the region as it would enhance economic growth and industrialisation in underdeveloped centres.
  • The company said compensation would be done in three categories — covering crops, land and structures, and buildings.
  • Mr Munyaka thanked Samburu Governor Moses Lenolkulal and the county leadership for their support and involvement in the project.

The Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco) has set aside Sh41 million to compensate owners of land where the Loiyangalani-Suswa 400KV transmission line will pass.

Power lines for the transmission grid from Lake Turkana South to Suswa will pass through Marsabit, Samburu, Laikipia, Nyandarua, Nakuru, Kajiado and Suswa, among other areas.

The transmission line will extend north from Suswa to the Lake Turkana Wind Power site near Loyangalani, through Naivasha, Gilgil, Nyahururu, Rumuruti, Maralal and Baragoi, a distance of 428km.

The project is in the initial stages and is expected to boost Kenya’s industrial production capacity and lighting through cheap power, after a successful power purchase deal between Kenya and Ethiopia.

Speaking to the Nation in Maralal, Samburu County, project engineer Joseph Munyaka said it was a strategic deal for the country and the region as it would enhance economic growth and industrialisation in underdeveloped centres.

Samburu County also stands to benefit from the project as it will cover more than 200km within the county, paving the way for creation of industries and reduction of insecurity through town-lighting projects.

The county, which has been depending on power from Nyahururu, will start benefiting by December 2016 when the project is expected to become fully operational.

COMPENSATION CATEGORIES

The company said compensation would be done in three categories — covering crops, land and structures, and buildings.

According to Mr Munyaka, the company has fully settled owners of 36 out of the 74 parcels where the power lines will pass through.

Citing various challenges, he called on Samburu residents to support the project, noting that Ketraco had faced hostility in some areas.

Compensation wrangles and complaints of low payments are some of the other challenges the company has been facing.

In some cases, locals rejected offers of compensation.

The team putting up the power lines in Samburu also experienced insecurity from cattle rustlers in Baragoi and was assigned Kenya Police Reservist guards.

Mr Munyaka thanked Samburu Governor Moses Lenolkulal and the county leadership for their support and involvement in the project.

The county helped Ketraco reach a compensation plan and valuation rates of Sh250,000 per acre, he said.

He added that the company is not purchasing the land but wants a 60-metre safe distance (30 metres each side) for families living near the transmission lines.

Some land owners may be allowed to cultivate food crops once the construction is done.