Wandayi, Senate team clash over bill on counties' power charges

Energy Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi on Tuesday clashed with senators over proposed changes to the Energy (Amendment) Bill, 2025. He urged the Senate not to approve the bill sponsored by Siaya Senator Oburu Oginga, saying the amendments would undermine efforts to lower the cost of electricity.

The CS warned that the proposed changes would negatively impact electricity tariffs currently enjoyed by Kenyans, including connection charges and periodic bills paid by consumers.

Appearing before the Senate Energy Committee, chaired by Senator Oburu, the CS said the government is working to reduce the high cost of power to ease the burden on consumers while ensuring the long-term viability and sustainability of the sector.

“The proposed amendments would result in unplanned levies at the county level, thereby increasing the cost of electricity and undermining power affordability for security agencies, households, schools, health facilities, industries and businesses. It would also erode checks and balances on a key national government function exercised by EPRA,” said Wandayi.

The CS explained that the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution assigns the national government responsibility for energy policy, including electricity and gas reticulation, as well as energy regulation. The Fifth Schedule of the Energy Act further outlines how these functions are shared between national and county governments.

He told senators it was important to note that wayleaves traverse multiple counties with different governance systems. Allowing the amendment, he said, would enable counties to impose separate levies on wayleaves without the consent of the Cabinet Secretary, creating a risk of duplicate charges across counties.

Wandayi argued that electricity infrastructure, particularly transmission and distribution, is developed as part of an integrated national system and least-cost power development plan, which are centrally managed to ensure efficiency, reliability and equity. He cautioned that allowing counties to impose levies independently would be unwise.

“Allowing counties to unilaterally impose levies without aligning with national strategies may cause project delays and cost escalations, especially in marginalized and low-revenue areas where affordability is critical,” said Wandayi.

He added that such levies would discourage investment in energy infrastructure by creating uncertainty in project costs, regulatory exposure and potential threats to the integrity of the national grid, undermining universal access goals in underserved regions.

Discourage investment

The Cabinet Secretary further noted that Article 209(5) of the Constitution stipulates that counties’ taxation and revenue-raising powers must not prejudice national economic policies, cross-county economic activities, or the movement of goods, services, capital, and labour.

“The proposed amendment would reverse the progress made in lowering the cost of electricity in the country,” said Wandayi, urging the Senate to retain the current provisions in the Energy Act (Cap 314), which require the Cabinet Secretary’s prior consent before counties introduce levies related to energy infrastructure.

The Energy (Amendment) Bill 2025, sponsored by Senator Oburu, seeks to give counties the freedom to impose wayleave charges on Kenya Power and other state agencies without first seeking approval from the Energy CS.

Oburu, however, maintained that the counties’ position differed from the CS’s submission. He argued that while Kenya Power does not pay for wayleaves, it charges companies such as Safaricom and other telecoms that use the same power lines, meaning the utility company earns revenue that rightfully belongs to the counties.

Currently, the law bars any public body from levying charges on public energy infrastructure without the Cabinet Secretary’s written consent, a provision that Kenya Power has relied on to justify non-payment of wayleave fees to counties. He said the proposed amendment aims to expand counties’ revenue streams in line with their constitutional mandate.