Kenya’s leading power company said it is approaching the final stages of converting overhead power lines to an underground cable system in Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu. Kenya Power on Thursday said they are laying the new cables.
This comes after offshore undersea fiber optic cables were cut, leaving many East African internet services and users with limited service ever since.
Joseph Njoroge, Kenya Power MD, said operations were underway, with the first running 2.5km from a sub-station in the Central Business District to State House.
“We are working on a proposal to undertake the works in Upperhill as a pilot then we move to Industrial area and then Mombasa. In two years time we should be commissioning in Upperhill and in Industrial area and Mombasa maybe in two and a half years,” he said.
According to the company, the project involves laying a total of 645km of 11 Kilovolt lines, and 1570km of low voltage power lines underground in Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu.
“The performance of the underground system has less interference and less influence by environmental factors and has better aesthetics,” Njoroge said.
The move, he added, “will see a major reduction in power interruptions as well as offer a more reliable delivery of electricity supply”.
Joseph Mayton
