Adani Group Secures $736 Million Power Project In Kenya Amid Airport Lease Protests

Despite temporary halts to the Adani Group's plans to operate Kenya's main airport due to protests, the ports-to-power conglomerate has secured a $736 million contract to construct three power transmission lines.

Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s company will finance, construct, operate, and maintain these transmission lines for a period of 30 years, the African nation's Cabinet Secretary for Energy Opiyo Wandayi said in a statement last week.

The agreement was signed between Adani Energy Solutions Ltd. (AESL), the transmission and distribution arm of the Adani Group, and the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company Limited (KETRACO).

The deal, said to be the country's first public-private partnership-funded power project, will have Adani raise all the funding in the form of debt and equity, to be repaid over the project's duration.

Under the terms of the contract, AESL will develop three transmission lines and two substations. The company will manage these assets for 30 years, ensuring their long-term sustainability and efficiency, before transferring ownership to KETRACO.

The project, with an estimated cost of 95.68 billion Kenyan shillings (approximately $736 million), will be implemented through a competitive bidding process co-managed by KETRACO and Adani.

While the new project aligns with the government's goal of increasing access to electricity nationwide and reducing blackouts and transmission losses, Wandayi also stated that it will strengthen the country's energy infrastructure and contribute to its economic and social transformation.

In a related effort, Apeiro Ltd., an Adani-linked firm, has recently partnered with a consortium led by Safaricom to digitise Kenya's health system through the implementation of an Integrated Healthcare Information Technology System (IHTS).

It is worth noting that a separate plan by the Kenyan government to lease the country’s main international airport to the Adani Group has been placed on hold following protests and a strike by aviation workers.

The proposal involves leasing Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to the Adani Group for 30 years, in exchange for a $1.85 billion investment from Adani for the airport’s expansion.

However, after a legal challenge initiated by the Kenya Human Rights Commission and the Law Society of Kenya, the Kenyan High Court has issued an injunction, temporarily suspending the agreement between the Kenyan government and Adani Airport Holdings Ltd.