Author: Wanjiku Njugunah

Kenya Electricity Generating Company PLC (KenGen) says it has surpassed a crucial stage in the ongoing USD 6.2 million geothermal drilling contracts in Ethiopia. According to the firm’s Managing Director and CEO Rebecca Miano, a team of KenGen engineers have so far crossed the 450 meters of drilling depth of the first of eight geothermal wells for the state-owned electricity producer, Ethiopia Electric Power Company which commenced in May this year. “The first 450 meters is the most difficult phase of the entire geothermal well drilling process which can go upto a depth of 3,000 meters,” Miano said. “This particular…

Land prices in Nairobi and its environs showed mild recovery in the second quarter, at a time when investors who froze investments in land at the peak of the Covid-19 economic crisis are slowly returning to the market on the improved business environment. This is according to a new report by HassConsult which indicates that land prices in Nairobi improved by 0.3 percent while the satellite towns showed a 1.1 percent increase. HassConsult Head of Development Consulting and Research Sakina Hassanali said select areas within the suburbs and towns are being favored by proximity, adding that these places are opening…

Sanlam Kenya PLC says it has restructured its foreign currency-denominated loan into a local currency facility. In a statement, the listed non-bank financial services provider says the move is geared at preserving shareholder value. During the first six months of the year, Sanlam says it restructured US$27 million loans into a Sh3 billion facility with a local banking institution to mitigate against future forex losses occasioned by the weakening of the Kenya Shilling against the United States dollar. The move comes at a time when the company has posted a Sh291.8 million loss, up from a Sh99.1 million loss posted…

The lockdown occasioned by the coronavirus pandemic saw new e-commerce users rise by 5 percent in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2020 when compared to the active base the previous year. This is according to a report by VISA, which attributes this to a preference of e-commerce to fill the void left by the closure of face-to-face retail, which was implemented across many parts of the world, including the region, to fight the viral disease. The ‘e-commerce developments across Su-Saharan Africa’ report also notes the economic shocks that followed COVID-19 have reduced spending power across the world, including in the region, but…

E-commerce and payment company Pesapal Limited has been accredited as a Payment Service Provider in Kenya and an Application Service License for Tanzania, amid the acceleration of the online payment industry in Africa, which has been growing since the beginning of 2020. In a statement, Pesapal says the milestones will enable consumers and businesses in the two East African economies to make and receive online payments seamlessly.  Kenya’s Central Bank has already granted authorization to Pesapal Limited as a Payment Service Provider (PSP) to carry out Payment Gateway Services in compliance with the law. In Tanzania, the company has received…

Regional bank Kenya Commercial Bank has doubled its profit after tax for the period ended June 2021. In a statement, KCB says its profit reached Sh15.3 billion, up from Sh7.6 billion posted during a similar period last year. During the period under review, revenues increased by 14 percent on account of higher interest income driven by an increase in earning assets and a lower cost of funding. The Group’s total income increased by 13.7 percent to Sh51.2 billion during the period, with net interest income going up by 17.7 percent to Sh36.6 billion from Sh31.1 billion last year. This was…

Regional bank Equity Group Holdings has announced a 98 percent growth in half year profits to Sh17.9 billion up from Sh9.1 billion registered the previous year. The Group’s Managing Director and CEO Dr James Mwangi said attributed improved performance to the defensive and offensive strategy, which they adopted at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As such, deposits registered a 51 percent growth to Sh820.3 billion up from Sh543.9 billion, while long term borrowed funds grew by 78 percent to Sh102.3 billion up from Sh57.6 billion. Net Loans and advances grew by 29 percent to Sh504.8 billion up from Sh391.6…

Kenya’s Ministry of Devolution together with the Food and Agriculture Organization say the country requires at least US$87 million to ensure food security in all the 23 Arid and Semi-Arid Lands Counties, between August and December 2021. In a statement, FAO says several interventions need to be done, at a time when the East African nation has been facing a myriad of challenges in the recent past including two desert locust invasions, the COVID-19 pandemic and poor rains that have resulted in food scarcity. If sourced, the funding will be used for several interventions and cover various areas, among them…

Centum Investment Company subsidiary Vipingo Development Limited (VDL) has handed over keys to more than 300 home buyers to their houses, following the completion of Phase 1 of the Palm Ridge Estate in Kilifi County, in the Kenyan coast. In a statement, Vipingo Development Limited says the Sh1.5 billion housing estate comprises 330 units of one, two and three-bedroom four-storey apartments priced at Sh2. (https://www.traveltalktours.com/) 5 million, Sh3.5 million and Sh4.6 million respectively. It marks the second major residential estate development by the company, and increases to about 400, the number of home owners within the 10,000-acre master-planned development that…

A new report by the Central Bank of Kenya has revealed that bed occupancy in some Kenyan hotels increased to 30 percent in June and July, respectively, from 19 percent in April. Bed occupancy in hotels in Nairobi and Mombasa counties improved in July, while the occupancy in the rest of the country declined. The occupancy levels in hotels in Nairobi and Nakuru counties were boosted by the World Rally championship in June. The report noted that hotels in Nakuru County reported that they were fully booked during this event. In addition, the end of financial year expenditure by the…