Kenya Railways Managing Director Phillip Mainga, EBS convened a meeting on April 3, 2024, at the Kenya Railway headquarters with the World Bank project implementation team, World Bank officials, and members of the Systèmes de Transports (SYSTRA) Group. The primary objective of the meeting was to review the potential of implementing an electric battery technology for commuter rail trains.

SYSTRA Group did a presentation on viability assessment for the electric battery option for commuter rail trains. On this, they touched on various factors including battery charging requirements, the theoretical capacity of the existing line between Nairobi Commuter Rail and Thika, replacing diesel gensets with rechargeable batteries and utilizing the batteries for traction power on non-electrified lines. They also pointed out on-going projects.

Kenya Railways MD urged the World bank representatives to take into serious consideration the implementation time of the program. He requested for their support and collaboration in order to achieve electric mobility and consider the Thika–Nanyuki line which is the longest.

The World bank team affirmed that they would support Kenya Railways in its efforts to improve the scalability and bankability of electric mobility solutions to meet the increasing demand for passenger transport while reducing the sector’s emissions. The World Bank executives mentioned that the program will be completed in August 2024.

Upon completion, Kenya will be the first country in Africa to adopt the electric battery option hence a major milestone for Kenya Railways.