Nairobi News

Must Read

Street light tariffs drop by 60 per cent


The electricity bill for Nairobi City County street lighting has been slashed by more than half, even as residents say their domestic costs are very high.

The Energy Regulatory Commission on Sunday announced the reduction of the street lighting tariff to Sh4.96 per unit from the gazetted Sh11.25, a drop of 60 per cent.

The new rates will only be applicable between 6pm and 6am.

ERC Director-General Joseph Ng’ang’a said the reduction was in line with the government’s plans to make Nairobi a 24-hour economy.

INEFFICIENCY

“We will, however, not pay for inefficiency on the part of the county government. If they decide to keep the lights on before 6pm or past 6am, the normal rate of Sh11.25 will apply in the extra hours,” he said.

Mr Ng’ang’a added that tariffs would be gazetted this week.

But citizens are not celebrating the change as many say they are yet to feel the reduction in power bills, months after the government predicted a drop by as much as 30 per cent.

Mr Ng’ang’a maintained that the retail price for electricity had dropped by as much as 26 per cent and the trajectory would continue.

“Of course, we did not hit the target of a 30 per cent drop but this was due to insufficient rains and delay in commissioning of geothermal power plants,” he said.

He said a 400kV transmission line between Nairobi and Mombasa was near completion and would be commissioned next year.