The Electricity Consumer Society of Kenya (ECSK) has threatened to take the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) to court over new categories used to classify domestic electricity consumers.
ECSK Executive Director Engineer Isaac Ndereva said the changes were introduced without public participation and could result in higher electricity bills for some households.
Speaking during an interview with NTV on Tuesday, September 29, Ndereva accused EPRA of making the changes without informing consumers.
“They have done it silently without consulting the public because they understood that we are going to get concerned, and we are going to inform the public. So right now, what they have done, they thought nobody would know, but we are telling the public that this is illegal,” Ndereva said.
He said the consumer group would challenge the changes in court, arguing that EPRA should have consulted the public before amending the tariff categories.
“We are even going to challenge the same in court, that they cannot do that amendment without consulting the public,” he added.
The dispute follows a gazette notice issued by EPRA on September 18, in which the regulator introduced three categories for domestic electricity consumers.
The categories are Domestic Consumer 1 – Lifeline (DC1), Domestic Consumer 2 – Ordinary (DC2) and Domestic Consumer 3 – Ordinary (DC3).
Under the new classification, households using between 0 and 30 kilowatt-hours (kWh) fall under DC1, while those consuming between 30 and 100 kWh are placed under DC2.
Consumers using between 100 and 15,000 kWh are classified under DC3.
EPRA stated that consumers would automatically be assigned to a tariff category based on their applicable three-month moving average consumption.
Ndereva, however, took issue with the changes, particularly the removal of the previous 30-60 kWh and 60-100 kWh bands and their replacement with one 30-100 kWh category.
“Now that is a big change, and they need to understand that they should have consulted the public,” he said.
ECSK argues that the new arrangement could increase the amount paid by some domestic consumers depending on their consumption.
The latest dispute comes months after the government announced that Kenya Power had withdrawn its application seeking a review of retail electricity tariffs for the 2026/27 to 2028/29 tariff control period.
Energy Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi said the withdrawal followed consultations within government and discussions with key sector players, including EPRA and Kenya Power.
The government said the decision was intended to address the sustainability of the energy sector while protecting households, businesses and industries from possible increases in costs.
The move had been welcomed by consumers who had raised concerns over the cost of electricity.
EPRA has also faced criticism over increases in electricity prices, with the regulator recently raising the electricity cost by KSh4.16 in the September billing cycle.