NAIROBI, Kenya — Thousands of electricity connection projects paid for by Kenyans remain unfinished, despite customers having remitted Sh12.7 billion to Kenya Power, an audit has revealed.
Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu disclosed that by June 2025, a significant number of paid connection works had either not started or suffered prolonged delays, leaving households and businesses without electricity.
According to the audit, 12,995 projects valued at Sh1.24 billion had not commenced at all, while 3,593 projects worth Sh1.9 billion were behind schedule.
“Review of a list of the works revealed that 7,740 projects with a total customer capital contribution of Sh877,821,276 were yet to start,” Gathungu said.
The report further shows that 5,255 projects, whose customers paid Sh366.7 million between one and six years ago, had not been initiated by the end of the review period.
The delays directly contravene Kenya Power’s customer charter, which requires electricity connections to be completed within seven to 28 days after payment.
The audit also flagged 3,427 projects valued at Sh963 million that have remained under implementation for periods stretching up to 29 years. Kenya Power has already spent Sh564.6 million on these long-running projects.
Gathungu noted that the stalled and delayed works form part of Sh23.46 billion worth of projects listed as under execution, warning that nearly a quarter of the value has either stalled or not commenced.
Some 166 projects valued at Sh937.9 million have remained pending for as long as 13 years, raising concerns over accountability and service delivery.
Kenya Power attributed the delays to challenges, including a lack of materials, wayleave acquisition problems that require redesigns, customer abandonment of projects, premises not being ready for connection, and requests for refunds or site transfers.
However, the Auditor-General faulted the utility for weak project oversight.
“The Company lacked regular progress monitoring, root cause analysis for delays, and corrective action plans,” Gathungu said.
She warned that prolonged delays risk eroding the value of customer funds and undermining Kenya Power’s ability to meet its operational and revenue targets.
