Dr Joseph Siror, CEO of Kenya Power, at the launch of smart poles project.

Kenya Power  has unveiled an ambitious plan to diversify its revenue stream, venturing into internet connectivity.

The company is piloting the ‘smart poles’ project to provide affordable Internet to public institutions.

The project will see Kenya Power install unique utility poles, smart poles, in six locations in Nairobi, which will provide high-speed internet connectivity.

These will be leased to telecom providers to mount their wireless transmission equipment.

Kenya Power says with its extensive network and fibre capacity, the company can provide cost-effective infrastructure for internet connectivity.

Dr Joseph Siror, CEO of Kenya Power, said: “With our wide network and fibre capacity, we intend to provide infrastructure for internet connectivity targeting public institutions such as schools and hospitals at a favourable cost.

“We will leverage innovative and sustainable solutions to ensure that we have a smart grid in place to tap into the new growth frontiers while at the same time offering excellent service to our customers.

“The Smart Poles will provide an alternative way to deploy the last mile data networks using wireless technologies, thus providing a solution to telecom service providers to improve data coverage and capacity, as well as address the challenge of signal dropouts.”