Kenya public has a week to weigh in on KPC sale
By John Otini, August 7, 2025Kenyans now have until August 13 to submit their views on the proposed privatisation of Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC), following the formal tabling of Sessional Paper No. 2 of 2025 in Parliament.
This after the National Treasury outlined plans to offload a 65 per cent stake in the state-owned energy giant, a strategic move that could inject much-needed momentum into the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), which has seen a prolonged listing drought.
The privatisation proposal—transmitted to the National Assembly and referred to the Departmental Committee on Energy and the Public Debt and Privatisation Committee—seeks to reduce government dominance in key commercial entities. At the same time, it aims to attract private capital, improve operational efficiency, and spur competition in the petroleum infrastructure sector.
Cautious optimism
While the National Treasury touts the move as a strategic reform to open up space for private investment, there is cautious optimism among market watchers.
The NSE has struggled in recent years, with a noticeable decline in new listings and growing concerns over market depth and liquidity. A successful listing of KPC would mark one of the most high-profile state divestitures in recent memory and could signal renewed confidence in capital markets.
However, the proposal also rekindles memories of past privatisations that ended badly. Notably, the listings of Uchumi Supermarkets and Mumias Sugar Company—once hailed as models of state divestiture—ultimately collapsed due to mismanagement, fraud, and weak regulatory oversight, leaving investors nursing heavy losses. These cautionary tales continue to cast a shadow over new public offerings.
Structured divestiture
The Treasury insists lessons have been learned. The sessional paper argues that structured divestiture, accompanied by governance reforms and strategic investor participation, can unlock value, improve service delivery, and support sustainable growth in capital-intensive sectors such as energy. The government’s current economic reform strategy, which includes liberalising State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), is also driven by a need to raise domestic revenue and cut fiscal deficits.
Members of the public, civil society organisations, and industry stakeholders are encouraged to engage with the process and submit memoranda, either physically to Parliament Buildings or via email, as outlined in the public notice.
The parliamentary committee will synthesise the feedback into a report that will guide the National Assembly’s decision on whether to approve the proposed sale, however, the deals seems to be a s good as done.
If executed transparently and efficiently, KPC’s partial sale could be the turning point the NSE has long waited for. But the road ahead will require more than just a public listing—it will demand investor trust, governance accountability, and policy consistency to avoid a repeat of past disappointments.