Garissa County has entered a new era of uninterrupted electricity supply following a massive capacity upgrade at the local Kenya Power substation, which effectively expands its output potential to 38 megavolt-ampere (MVA), up from a severely constrained 15 MVA.

The station, first commissioned in May 2016, originally operated with a single 7.5 MVA transformer before a second identical unit was added later.

However, the existing infrastructure continuously struggled to keep pace with rapid urbanization and surging local demand, resulting in low voltage and frequent blackouts that paralyzed local businesses.

Inspecting the installation of a new 23 MVA transformer over the weekend, Energy Principal Secretary Alex Wachira assured residents and business owners that the perennial power outages affecting Garissa and its environs are officially over.

He revealed that the previous maximum capacity restricted the power absorption of the entire local population to just 15 megawatts, causing severe overloading.

According to the Principal Secretary, the new transformer was a direct delivery on a development promise made by the President to alleviate the region’s energy crisis.

By retaining one of the existing functional transformers alongside the new installation, the substation will maintain a total capacity of 30.5 MVA, allowing Garissa to reliably absorb up to 30 megawatts of power and paving the way for Dadaab Sub-County to finally be connected to the national grid.

This infrastructure strain in Garissa mirrors a broader economic boom across the nation. Principal Secretary Wachira noted that Kenya recently recorded a new historic peak demand of 2,502 megawatts, climbing from 2,444 megawatts.

Over the last three years alone, the country’s overall electricity demand has shot up by more than 282 megawatts, a trend the ministry directly attributes to rising industrial transformation and expanding commercial activities nationwide.

Welcoming the upgrade, Garissa Township MP Dekow Mohamed expressed gratitude for the timely intervention, noting that the town remains one of the fastest-growing urban centers in the country.

He emphasized that resolving the decade-long energy bottlenecks will immediately transform the local economy, making Garissa far more competitive in attracting and retaining major commercial investors.