Kenya Passes Energy Bill 2017

On Tuesday President Uhuru Kenyatta assented to the Energy Bill 2017, the Petroleum Bill 2017 and the Urban Areas and Cities (Amendment) Bill 2017.

The Energy Bill will see the creation of three new agencies to manage the sector, namely the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority, the Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation, and the Nuclear Power and Energy Agency.

Each agency will have its own distinct mandate. The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority will oversee the regulation of generation, importation, exportation, transmission, distributions, supply and use of electrical energy excluding the licensing of nuclear facilities. It will also oversee the management of petroleum products, excluding crude oil.

The Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation will be concerned with the delivery of Kenya’s Rural Electrification Programme, while the Nuclear Power and Energy Agency will focus on the nuclear power programme.

The Petroleum Bill, which provides a framework for the exploration and exploitation of the commodity, also sets out the share of revenue that the national government, county governments and communities.