Kenya's electricity demand climbed to a five-year high in the year to June 2026, with peak consumption crossing the 2,500 megawatt mark for the first time. Data from the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) shows peak demand reached 2,514.28 megawatts (MW) on June 29, 2026, an 8.55 per cent increase from the 2,316.22MW recorded in the previous year. This growth is attributed to higher electricity use and the continued expansion of grid connections.
The rise in demand came as Kenya continued to widen access to electricity while increasing investment in renewable power. According to the International Energy Agency, electricity access in Kenya grew from 37 per cent in 2013 to 79 per cent in 2023, with the country aiming to achieve universal access by 2030. This growth in electricity access has been driven by efforts to increase the number of grid connections and improve the reliability of the power supply.
Electricity generation also recorded strong growth during the period, rising to 15,692.81 gigawatt-hours (GWh) from 14,472GWh in the previous financial year. The increase of 1,220.82GWh was the largest annual rise recorded during the five-year period covered by the EPRA report. This growth in electricity generation was primarily attributed to increased grid connectivity, rising electricity demand, and higher levels of economic activity.
Renewable sources continued to provide most of Kenya's electricity, accounting for 81.13 per cent of total generation during the year. Geothermal power contributed the largest share at 40.91 per cent, followed by hydropower at 22.65 per cent and wind power at 12.31 per cent. Geothermal generation rose to 6,420.51GWh from 5,718.16GWh in the previous year, driven by additional geothermal capacity from the Menengai project in Nakuru County.
Despite the growth in electricity supply and demand, EPRA reported continued problems with reliability and power losses. System losses stood at 21.38 per cent during the year, an improvement from 23.36 per cent in the previous period but still above EPRA's allowable level of 16.5 per cent. This means that for every 100MW generated, only 78.62MW was sold with 21.38MW being lost to technical losses and commercial inefficiencies.
Customers also experienced longer power interruptions, with the average outage lasting 3.23 hours per incident compared with 2.57 hours in the previous year. The figure was above EPRA's regulatory benchmark of 1.36 hours. May recorded the highest monthly interruption duration at 27.33 hours, while July had the lowest at 7.18 hours. At the same time, electricity access continued to grow, with 411,710 new customers connected during the year.
The total number of grid-connected customers reached 10,432,707, and Kenya's electricity distribution network also grew by 22,532 kilometres to reach 334,157km, representing a 7.23 per cent increase. The figures show that electricity use and generation are rising alongside wider grid access and economic activity, while the power sector continues to deal with losses and interruptions that affect how reliably electricity reaches consumers.
Key points
- Kenya's peak electricity demand reached 2,514.28MW on June 29, 2026, an 8.55 per cent increase from the previous year.
- Renewable sources accounted for 81.13 per cent of Kenya's electricity generation during the year.
- Electricity access in Kenya grew from 37 per cent in 2013 to 79 per cent in 2023, with the country aiming to achieve universal access by 2030.
