The High Court has issued an emergency order freezing the payment of Sh10 billion by the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco) to a collapsed Spanish contractor. The ruling comes amid explosive allegations that the state utility was set to compensate the firm for a “ghost project”—a high-voltage transmission line that reportedly exists only on paper.
Justice presiding over the case issued a conservatory order on Monday, barring the National Treasury, the Ministry of Energy, and the Attorney General from processing any funds to Inabensa Enerji AŞ or its affiliates. The court also mandated the preservation of all financial and communication records related to the contested disbursement.
The ‘Monetization of Failure’
The legal intervention follows a petition by Lalashe Consulting, a public interest group. The petitioners argue that the Sh10 billion claim stems from a 2013 contract for the 400kV Lessos–Tororo transmission line and a substation extension—projects that were terminated in 2016 due to the contractor’s failure to even begin construction.
“No transmission line was completed… and not a single transmission tower was erected. The project existed largely on paper, yet the financial exposure confronting the public purse runs into billions,” the petition reads.
Lalashe Consulting characterized the payout as a “monetization of failure,” warning that if the funds are released to a bankrupt foreign entity, the loss to Kenyan taxpayers would be irreversible.
A Decade of Legal Deadlock
The dispute has evolved into a complex financial standoff that now threatens the stability of Kenya’s national power grid. While Ketraco terminated the contract in 2016 for non-performance, an arbitration tribunal later found the utility in breach, awarding the Spanish firm billions in damages and interest.
Ketraco’s subsequent appeals to the High Court, Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court were all unsuccessful, leading to the current Sh10 billion valuation of the debt.
Financial Comparison: Original Contract vs. Current Claim
| Project Component | Original Value (2013) | Current Claim (2025) | Status |
| Lessos-Tororo Line | €24.5 Million (~Sh3.6bn) | — | Never Built |
| Substation Extension | Sh893 Million | — | Incomplete |
| Total Liability | ~Sh4.5 Billion | Sh10 Billion | Frozen by Court |
Blackout Risks and Frozen Accounts
The crisis is compounded by a separate legal maneuver in which an affiliate of the Spanish firm, C.A. Infraestructuras T & I SLU, successfully froze 17 of Ketraco’s bank accounts across five major Kenyan lenders (NCBA, StanChart, Co-op Bank, Citibank, and KCB).
Ketraco has warned the court that this financial blockade has left it unable to pay salaries, service international loans, or maintain infrastructure. The utility cautioned that the inability to access operational funds risks nationwide blackouts, which could cripple the industrial sector and essential services like hospitals.
The High Court’s latest order maintains the status quo, preventing the Sh10 billion payout while the constitutional questions regarding the project’s delivery and the payee’s legitimacy are resolved.
