In a major setback for billionaire Gautam Adani, the Kenyan high court on Friday ordered the suspension of a $736 million deal between the state-owned Kenya Electrical Transmission Company (KETRACO) and Adani Group’s Adani Energy Solutions to o build and operate power infrastructure including transmission lines.
The deal between Adani Group and KETRACO had been challenged by the Law Society of Kenya in the high court, which ruled that the Kenyan government could not move ahead the 30-year agreement with Adani Energy Solutions until the court makes a determination on the case.
The law society has argued that the power deal between Adani Power and the state-owned utility is “a constitutional sham” and “tainted with secrecy”. It also claimed that KETRACO and Adani Energy Solutions did not carry out meaningful public participation around the project, a requirement under Kenya’s Public Private Partnerships Act of 2021 which allows private sector development of public projects.
Previously, Kenya’s energy ministry had that it had run a competitive bidding process which was won by Gautam Adani-led Adani Group.
Earlier this month, KETRACO and Adani Energy Solutions had signed a public-private partnership agreement which the energy ministry said would help address persistent power blackouts and support economic growth in the country.
Notably, another proposed public-private partnership project between the Adani Group and the Kenyan government to lease Kenya’s main airport for 30 years in exchange for expanding it, has also triggered anger in the country.
The proposed airport deal has also been challenged in the court by the Law Society of Kenya, and the Kenya Human Rights Commission, who have argued that the deal is unaffordable, threatens job losses and does not offer value for money.
An response from the Adani Group on the matter is awaited,
(With inputs from agencies)
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