Turkana Wind Power probe: MPs to summon former KETRACO boss Fernandes Barasa
Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (KETRACO)
Acting Managing Director Anthony Wamukota had a tough time at the National
Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Thursday.
This as he was put to task to explain why a
tender for the construction of a transmission line from Loyangalani to Suswa
was made on the advice of Lake Turkana Wind Power company, a firm that
eventually benefited financially from delays in completion of the project.
Members of Parliament now want former KETRACO
CEO Fernandes Barasa summoned to the committee to explain why KETRACO entered
into an unfavourable contract.
Barasa recently left the company to run for
the Kakamega gubernatorial seat; but even before he crafts his election
roadmap, MPs want him recalled to answer questions over how a tender for the
Loyangalani – Suswa transmission line was awarded.
It all started in 2009, when a deal was
signed between Kenya Power and the Lake Turkana Wind Power Company for the
purchase of power produced by the latter. At the time, there was no
transmission line to evacuate the high voltage electricity.
And so the Ministry of Energy at the time tasked
the Lake Turkana Wind Power Company to invite tenders on behalf of KPLC.
The company did as instructed and hired a
consultancy firm known as KEMA to do the evaluation of bids. And then in 2013,
KETRACO took over the procurement process with KEMA as its consultant.
Isolux Ingenieria, a Spanish firm, was
arrived at as per recommendation. It had been required to complete the project
by December 2013, a deadline it never kept.
After a series of extensions, Isolux was
found to have run bankrupt forcing KETRACO to terminate the contract.
All this time, the power purchase agreement
between KPLC and Lake Turkana company was that should Kenya Power not be ready
with a transmission line to evacuate the power produced, it was going to pay
the producing company a penalty for power not taken up.
Lake Turkana Company finished its works in
January 2017, by which time Isolux was unable to function.
KETRACO reassigned the transmission line
tender to a Chinese firm which completed the project in September 2018. But the
damage had already been done with the government slapped with a bill of Ksh.16
billion for deemed generated power.
MPs are now concerned over how KETRACO, KPLC
and the Ministry of Energy agreed to a deal with Lake Turkana Wind Power
company to help them recruit a contractor for the construction of the
transmission line, with a clause that any delay occasioning unused power would
require the government to pay Lake Turkana Company a form of compensation.
It would appear that Lake Turkana Wind Power was
the ultimate beneficiary of the delays.
KETRACO’s Acting CEO Anthony Wamukota claimed
non-involvement in the initial stages of tendering, until when the Isolux
contract was terminated.
He claimed no knowledge of the goings on
despite having been at the organization since 2010.
Frustrated MPs now keen on hearing from the
immediate former CEO Fernandes Barasa.
Want to send us a story? Submit on Wananchi Reporting on the Citizen Digital App or Send an email to wananchi@royalmedia.co.ke or Send an SMS to 25170 or WhatsApp on 0743570000
Comments
No comments yet.
Leave a Comment