Kenyan President Ruto Cancels Adani Group Deals

By Lisbeth Micheni, Kenya

Kenyan President William Ruto has ordered the immediate cancellation of the Adani Group’s planned takeover of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

In addition, the President directed the termination of a signed deal between the Adani Group and the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco).

Speaking during his State of the Nation address in Parliament, Ruto cited new evidence from local investigative agencies and international partners that implicated the Indian conglomerate in corruption.

“Honourable members, I have stated in the past and now reiterate today that in the face of undisputed evidence or credible information on corruption, I will not hesitate to take decisive action,” Ruto said.

“Accordingly, I now direct, in furtherance of principles enshrined in Article 10 of the constitution on transparency and accountability, and based on new information provided by investigative agencies and partner nations, that the procuring agencies in the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum, immediately cancel the ongoing procurement process for the JKIA expansion private-public-partnership,” he added.

The President also instructed the ministries involved to “immediately begin the process of onboarding new partners because these are important projects.”

His announcement was met with cheers and applause from members of both the Senate and the National Assembly.

The Adani Group, owned by Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, has recently faced global scrutiny. Most recently, Adani was charged with fraud in the United States. Reports from New York prosecutors allege that Adani and senior executives bribed Indian officials to secure contracts for a renewable energy company projected to generate over $2 billion in profits over 20 years.

The Adani Group has denied these allegations, calling them “baseless” and asserting that the company would seek “all possible legal recourse.”

In Kenya, the Ministry of Energy signed a KSh96 billion deal on October 11 with Adani Energy Solutions Limited to manage Ketraco’s transmission lines for 30 years. Energy and Petroleum Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi stated that Adani would develop, finance, construct, and operate critical transmission lines and substations nationwide.

However, the High Court in Nairobi issued conservatory orders on October 25 halting the implementation of the deal. The court also barred Adani from entering into any new agreements or advancing existing ones. This followed a petition by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), which termed the Ketraco deal as “a constitutional sham” tainted with secrecy and lacking integrity principles.

Despite public outcry, another deal had been in progress for Adani Group to take over operations at JKIA for 30 years in exchange for KSh238 billion. However, with the President’s directive, this plan has now been terminated.