Kenyan property owners risk fines over solar water heaters regulation

Property owners in Kenya risk a US $10,000 fine or one year jail term if they fail to comply with the solar water heaters regulation recently introduced by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

ERC director-general Pavel Oimeke said that the commission is currently carrying out surveillance visits on buildings under construction and random spot checks on existing premises to ensure that they have complied with the rule.

ERC had pushed the deadline for this directive to May 25, 2018 to give property owners ample time for compliance.

The idea is to encourage the use of renewable sources of energy in Kenya. Premises with hot water requirements of more than 100 litres per day must be fitted with solar heating systems. The affected structures consist of domestic houses with at least three bedrooms, colleges and boarding schools with 20 or more students and hotels, hostels and lodges with at least four beds.

Others include restaurants that serve at least 20 meals a day and laundries that handle more than 20kg of clothes.

The regulations prohibit Kenya Power from connecting electricity to any of the property owners that fail to install solar panels on their buildings.

The Energy Regulatory Commission  has several objectives and functions which include regulating the electrical energy, petroleum and related products, renewable energy and other forms of energy.