Ethiopia's plan to export electricity to Kenya may be in jeopardy as constructing the 500kv electricity lines connecting the two countries faces more delays.

Even though Ethiopia has completed the construction of the 412Km line and substations on its side, Kenya is yet to do the same due to land disputes arising from the right of way for roads.

Jointly funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the World Bank, the project was operational last year. Delays will hold Ethiopia back from exporting a planned 200mw of electricity, earning the country eight million dollars a month. This has created concerns among Ethiopia`s officials who fear that the country may not meet its ambition of generating one billion dollars in annual electricity exports to neighbouring countries beginning in 2023.

"We've been ready to start exporting the electricity beginning this year," said Hailemariam Moges, senior engineer for the Ethiopia-Kenya Electricity Highway Project. "However, with the delay on Kenya's side, doing so has not been possible."

Ethiopia is investing heavily in the power sector, hoping to exceed 10,000mw in power generation capacity. The completion of the GERD is a flagship national project, increasing power output by more than 100pc when all its 15 turbines began to operate.

It has obtained a 335 million dollars concessional loan from the two multilateral lenders, with 40pc of the loan secured from the AfDB. With a grace period of 30 years, debt servicing for both loans will begin in three decades.

The Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) has already finalised the commissioning and testing of the electricity lines, while Siemens, contracted for the construction of power converter stations, has delivered on its obligations. According to experts working at the project site, the process is now at the post-construction stage, making some minor corrections. Kenya was expected to construct 633Km of electricity lines and build a converter station plant, both of which are yet to be delivered due to a delay caused by issues with right of way for roads and construction failures, according to sources.

Even though the building of the electricity lines has been delayed because of court cases involving the right of way issues for 15Km of road, Kenya’s officials failed to present a logical reason for the delay of the construction of the converter station, which is being carried out by the same company in both countries, according to a senior Ethiopian official involved in the project.

"We've seen a lack of commitment on Kenya’s side, probably caused by the recent electricity surplus in the country,” this official, who requested to remain anonymous, said.

Having an installed electricity generating capacity of 2,766 megawatts (MW), Kenya recently announced that its actual production of electricity exceeds demand by 30pc.