Ketraco refused to publicly disclose the terms of the contract agreement it signed with the Indian Adani Group to build three transmission lines and two substations.
The state-owned company rejected an attempt by a city law firm, IC Law LLP, to make public details of the financial position of the Adani Energy subsidiary, and a list of other companies, if any, that have floated a similar proposal to Ketraco for the project. and the results of the recommendations made by Kenyans on the deal, as well as the legal advice provided by the Attorney General’s Office to Ketraco on the deal.
Ketraco has awarded Adani Energy Solutions, a subsidiary of Adani Group, a tender for the construction of the 206 km 400 kV Gilgil-Thika-Mala-Kunza line, the 95 km 132 kV Rongai-Kiringit-Kemuset road, and the Meningai- Olkalo-Rumoroti is 70 km long and has a voltage of 132 kV. Lines. The Indian company will also build a 400/220 kV substation at Lessos and a 132/33 kV Rongai substation at Thordiboro in Kisumu.
IC Law LLP wrote to Ketraco on September 11 seeking to get the state-owned company to disclose details of the agreement with Adani Energy Solutions, in a bid to lift the lid on the deal, which was signed in secret.
The Treasury revealed for the first time the signing of the deal in an update on the public-private partnership projects Kenya has entered into.
Deals between the government and Adani Group have come under increasing scrutiny following the controversial attempt to sign a 30-year concession lease for the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Under the proposed lease, which has since been stayed by the Supreme Court, the Adani Group would expand the airport and build new taxiways, among other critical infrastructure.
“After reviewing your submission, we note that the requested information is currently under consideration and this falls outside the scope of disclosure under Section 4(1) of the Access to Information Act,” Ketraco managing director, John Mativo, says in the law firm’s response letter.
“We pledge that after due consideration and completion of the process, the information requested may be availed (sic).”
IC Law LLP wrote to Ketraco weeks after the Treasury disclosures on the deal were made public as the law firm sought to force the government to reveal details of the agreements with Adani.
“We wish to exercise our right to obtain information within your organization, including but not limited to: project agreements, financial capacity of the bidding firm, bidding process and public engagement,” the law firm said in its letter to Ketraco.
The Treasury revealed in July that the deal with Adani Energy Solutions had already been signed and the two companies were finalizing the details of the contract.
However, Ketraco last month invited Kenyans to attend public engagement sessions on deals with Adani Energy Solutions, raising eyebrows about the impact of the discussions given that the contracts have already been awarded.
The deal with Adani Group is one of the public-private partnership projects that Kenya is adopting to build transmission lines and bridge infrastructure delays in the energy sector, without burdening the treasury or obtaining loans.
Aging infrastructure is a major headache facing Kenya’s electricity sector and has been blamed for several nationwide blackouts, but funding problems from the treasury have made it difficult for Kenya to finance the renewal of the grid using its revenues.