Companies

Danish firm gets nod to take over ex-Jamii Bora chair’s company

jamii

CAK director-general Kariuki Wang’ombe. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Former Jamii Bora Bank chairman James Gacheru is finally set to relinquish control of his renewable energy firm, Chania Green Generation, to Denmark’s Frontier Energy for an undisclosed amount.

Frontier Energy, the East African-focused renewable energy developer and contractor, has received the green light from the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) to take a controlling stake, believed to be around 51 percent, in Chania Green Generation.

“It is notified for general information that in the exercise of the powers conferred upon the Competition Authority by section 46 (6) (a) (ii) of the Competition Act, the Competition Authority has authorised the proposed transaction,” CAK director-general Kariuki Wang’ombe said.

The businessman had earlier opted to go it alone in putting up a 51-megawatt wind power plant in Kajiado after a bitter falling out with a partner in 2017.

The tycoon, who also sat on the board of National Oil Corporation among other corporates, had said he would build the electricity plant after the collapse of a joint venture with businessman Martin Kinoti Kinyua.

The project had been estimated to cost about Sh12 billion.

Mr Gacheru and Mr Kinyua had formed a special purpose vehicle, Chagem Ltd, to build the wind farm at Loodariak in Ngong. The joint venture was on a 50-50 share structure through their respective firms, Chania Green Generation and Gem-CM.

The two businessmen, however, disagreed over management of Chagem, resulting in a solvency suit by Mr Kinyua in August 2017.

Kenya’s renewable energy policy provides for small and medium-sized wind projects under the feed-in-tariff system, which fixes electricity prices for wind and solar projects of up to a capacity of 50 megawatts.