The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) reported that May 2026 was the worst month for electricity interruptions in the financial year ending June 2026.

Customers experienced an average of 4.98 power interruptions per customer in May, the highest monthly figure recorded for the year.

The System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI) for the month reached 27.33 hours, meaning the average customer endured more than a full day without power.

The Customer Average Interruption Duration Index (CAIDI) stood at 5.49 hours, indicating each outage lasted over five hours on average.

Across the entire 12‑month period, customers logged an average of 13.16 hours of interruptions, up from 9.42 hours in the previous financial year, well above EPRA’s 1.5‑hour SAIDI target.

Monthly outage frequency also exceeded the regulator’s goal, with an average of 3.91 interruptions per customer each month versus the target of 1.10.

EPRA’s five‑year data show the reliability gap widening, with the annual CAIDI rising to 3.23 hours in 2025/26 from 2.57 hours the year before, and the utility missing its CAIDI target for two consecutive years.

Implications for households and small businesses

Frequent and prolonged outages disrupt daily activities such as cooking, studying, and remote work, and affect essential services like water pumping, refrigeration and internet connectivity.

Small enterprises—including salons, restaurants, workshops and manufacturers—face operational halts, loss of perishable inventory and reduced working hours when power is unavailable.

Businesses that rely on backup generators can stay operational, but incur additional fuel and maintenance costs.

The broader economy feels the impact because electricity underpins manufacturing, agriculture, hospitality, transport and Kenya’s growing digital sector.