The Kenyan section of the ZTK Interconnector is the 400 kV link connecting Kenya's grid to Tanzania and the wider Zambia-Tanzania-Kenya power corridor. It enables cross-border electricity exchange and improves grid reliability through the transmission line and associated substations. KETRACO energised the Kenya-Tanzania interconnector on 13 December 2024, placing the Kenyan section in operation.
Construction of a transmission line that connects the power networks of Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya. This project includes the 96km Kenyan section of the 2,800km ZTK interconnector, which runs from Arusha in Tanzania to Isinya in Kenya. In Kenya, the line will be linked to the high-voltage direct current interconnector between Kenya and Ethiopia
The objective of the ZTK Interconnector is to facilitate trading in electricity in the region and promote power systems' stability. ZTK will effectively connect the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) with the East African Power Pool (EAPP). Its benefits are multifaceted, as it will simultaneously connect Tanzania to the East African Power Pool and Southern African Power Pool for the first time. By interconnecting the EAPP and SAPP grids, it will create the largest power pool on the continent and will be an essential component of the North-South (Cape to Cairo) power transmission corridor.
Impact on energy security is immense due to diversification of power supply and the power generation mix, which will include Wind along the coastal areas, coal in Southern Africa, Hydro Power in the south (DRC, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe) and in the North (Ethiopia), Natural Gas (Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya), Geothermal (Kenya & Ethiopia), Solar PV and Thermal (mostly in the Namib, Kalahari and Sahara Deserts). Once other PIDàPAP power generation projects i.e. Inga III project (and Agenda 2063 flagship project), The grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Batoka Gorge Hydropower Scheme, Mpanda Nkuwa Hyropower, Ruzizi III and Rusumo Falls come on line, the ZTK will immediately give the Burundi, DRC, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia and Zimbabwe access to the EAPP and SAPP markets between Cape and Cairo.
The energy security, diversified power generation mix and competition will reduce the power tariff, which in turn will stimulate industrial development, increase employment, increase access to energy and thus help in reducing poverty on the continent.