A comprehensive audit of electricity meters linked to Nairobi City County has uncovered a staggering Sh1.55 billion in outstanding power bills, raising concerns over the county’s energy management and billing accuracy.
The meter verification exercise, conducted jointly by Kenya Power and the Nairobi City County Government, assessed 7,596 supply locations across the capital in three phases.
The initiative, which commenced on January 24, 2023, sought to establish the status of metering points owned by City Hall and address discrepancies in billing.
According to a joint report by the two entities, of the 6,734 locations inspected in the first two phases, 4,750 had active meters.
However, these accounts collectively owed over Sh1.4 billion as of September 2024.
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In addition, a substantial number of meters were found to be faulty, contributing to a separate Sh16 million debt.
A more alarming discovery was that 1,823 locations either lacked meters or had devices that failed to record data, leading to unpaid bills amounting to Sh127 million.
The audit further identified 32 supply points that were inaccessible and 22 instances of duplicate accounts, complicating the billing process.
“The total debt across all the supply points amounted to Sh1.55 billion, including both active and faulty meter locations, as well as those with no meter readings,” read the report in part.
In response to the findings, the report has recommended urgent measures to address the financial and technical gaps. City Hall has been urged to expedite payment of the Sh1.4 billion owed by active accounts, while also taking immediate steps to repair or replace malfunctioning meters.
The report further advised the county government to ensure all metering locations are accessible to facilitate accurate data collection. Additionally, it called for the resolution of duplicate accounts to streamline billing records and prevent further financial discrepancies.
