2,450 building owners risk jail term in ERC energy audit order
Workers at a factory in Athi River. The ERC energy audits target big power consumers such as those in agricultural and cement industries. PHOTO | FILE
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has warned that owners of some 2,450 commercial buildings will be jailed or fined heavily if they failed to conduct energy audits on their premises by the end of this week.
The ERC director for renewable energy, Robert Oimeke said only 1,050 of the 3,500 buildings asked to meet the terms three years ago had complied ahead of the legal timeline.
The Energy (Management) Regulations, 2012 stipulate that buildings which consume an average of 15,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) per month or 180,000 kWh annually ought to conduct consumption assessment.
“If you do not comply with the regulations you risk a fine of up to Sh1 million, a one- year jail term, or both upon conviction by a court of law,” said Mr Oimeke. All defaulting building owners were issued with letters and notifications asking them to comply, he said.
The audits are designed for facilities like malls, agricultural industries, cement factories, universities, hospitals, big hotels, as energy saving measures with the aim of increasing production.
Data prepared by ERC shows that energy expense accounts for between 30 and 40 per cent of costs for agricultural industries, and 70 per cent in cement industry.
“We want to make business sustainable. Compliance will save the firms money in the long run. This is a win-win situation for the establishments and we expect compliance to be high,” Mr Oimeke said, adding that the campaign aims to cut energy consumption by at least 50 per cent.
Such assessments must be done by licensed energy auditors and energy audit firms, the ERC said.
The Commission has since that start of the campaign licensed 50 energy auditors and 15 energy audit firms. “You can be assessed at a fee of Sh100,000 or more depending on the size of your premise, which is better than being fined Sh1 million for non-compliance,” he said.
Among the building owners which have complied are Kenyatta National Hospital, British American Tobacco (BAT), Nation Media Group (NMG), Village Market, Nairobi Safari Club.
Others include Wilson Airport, Rea Vipingo, Kenya Ports Authority, Bidco Oil, Mombasa Cement, Oil Libya, Total Kenya, and Kenya Utalii College.
PAYE Tax Calculator
Note: The results are not exact but very close to the actual.
