Safaricom Limited and Kenya Power, through its subsidiary Kenya Power International, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that the two say will see more Kenyans connected to broadband Internet.
"The MoU sets the stage for the two firms to collaborate to implement a pilot fibre optic project aimed at providing internet to homes via Kenya's Power's electricity distribution network," announced a joint statement issued to the media.
Under the partnership Safaricom will lease additional broadband infrastructure built and owned by Kenya Power in order to roll out a "last mile" network, with the aim of connecting more homes to its broadband internet services.
Dr. Ben Chumo, Managing Director and CEO at Kenya Power International said Kenya Power already owns and operates more than 4,000km in length of fibre optic cable network in the country, which it leases to the major telecom players.
"The agreement will promote development and improvement of additional telecommunications infrastructure for effective and efficient provision of telecommunications services to both public and private institutions through provision of adequate, reliable and competitively-priced fibre networks," detailed Dr. Chumo.
Representatives of the two companies also expressed hope that the collaboration will provide valuable lessons into how to scale and speed up the connection of homes and small offices to broadband.
Bob Collymore, CEO at Safaricom Limited, said, "This collaborative partnership harnesses the strength of both partners to extend a new world of possibilities to our customers, in recognition of the transformative impact of the Internet,"
Safaricom said it has already rolled out 3,200km of fibre reaching 7,000 homes and believes the partnership with Kenya Power International will open up more broadband delivery opportunities. "By leveraging on Kenya Power's electricity infrastructure we will not only be able to accelerate the rate of connection to homes, we will tackle challenges experienced in roll-out of broadband services and reduce the inconvenience caused to Kenyans when we are forced to dig trenches to lay the underground fibre optic cable grid." concluded Collymore.
The project is targeting more than 12,000 homes in a 12-month pilot that will be carried out in residential areas in and around Nairobi.
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