A consortium led by China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) has won a Sh170 billion deal to build the Nairobi–Nakuru–Mau Summit highway after quoting a lower base toll rate than the French contractors initially awarded the contract.
The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) announced on Thursday that China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC, in partnership with the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), has been selected to undertake the construction of the highway.
Officials at the roads agency said the consortium’s lower project costs would translate into reduced toll fees for motorists.
The consortium edged out Shandong Hi-Speed Road & Bridge International Engineering Co., Ltd. (SDRBI), which had also submitted a privately initiated proposal (P-i-P).
The Treasury’s Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Committee cited CRBC’s extensive experience, including building and operating Kenya’s first toll road, the Nairobi Expressway.
At its 47th extraordinary meeting on October 9, 2025, the PPP Committee resolved that the project met all PPP requirements, including public interest and affordability tests.
“The Committee approved the recommendation of the evaluation report, which named the China Road & Bridge Corporation (CRBC) and National Social Security Fund (Trustees) consortium as the preferred proponent, subject to fulfilment of the technical, financial, environmental, social, and legal conditions outlined in the evaluation report,” KeNHA disclosed.
Asked why the CRBC-led consortium emerged as the winner, Director-General for PPP Kefa Seda said in a brief message: “Base toll [for CRBC–NSSF] was lower.”
A base toll is the charge for using a road before factoring in inflation and exchange rate losses.
The winning consortium also agreed to absorb traffic-volume risk rather than pass it to the government—a departure from the French contractors, who wanted the State to shoulder the cost of any fall in traffic.
Ability to work under a tight deadline was another factor in favour of the CRBC–NSSF bid, as the William Ruto-led administration races to complete the project before the next elections in 2027.
The NSSF earlier disclosed its intention to acquire half of the stake in the consortium, committing Sh20 billion to Sh25 billion for a 30-year investment, which it expects to recoup through toll collections over the concession period.
Besides the 174.90-kilometre stretch from the Rironi Interchange to the Mau Summit Turnoff, motorists will pay tolls on the section from Rironi Interchange to the Naivasha Interchange via Mai Mahiu, which spans about 56.38 kilometres—effectively leaving no free alternative route between Nairobi and Nakuru.
KeNHA officials who spoke to the Business Daily said that, given the lack of an easier alternative on this corridor, toll fees will be set lower than those on the Nairobi Expressway from Westlands to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, for example.
“It has to be low because there is no alternative,” said a KeNHA official, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.
Should the consortium receive the green light, it will also expand the Maai Mahiu road to four lanes and erect toll stations along the 56-kilometre stretch.
The KeNHA added that it was not able to provide a free alternative route because it did not want to acquire virgin land, which would have pushed up project costs.
CRBC is also the company behind the standard gauge railway (SGR) from Mombasa to Naivasha.
President Ruto is keen to see the new road project completed before the next polls, a key selling point to residents of the Rift Valley, Western Kenya and Nyanza, where motorists often endure long traffic snarl-ups, especially during festive seasons.
The road is expected to significantly cut travel time along the corridor, easing congestion on the main artery from Nairobi to Western Kenya and neighbouring Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Ruto administration cancelled the deal inked by his predecessor with the three French contractors, terming it too expensive. The government is expected to pay termination fees of around Sh7.2 billion to the French consortium led by Vinci SA Highway.
