In an advert published in local dailies, KPLC said it made the changes following approval by shareholders and the Register of Companies.
“Notice is hereby given that The Kenya Power and Lighting Company Limited has changed its name to The Kenya Power and Lightning Company PLC, following the due approval by shareholders and on receipt of the certificate of change of name issued by the Register of Companies,” the notice stated.
The Companies Act 2015 gives companies power to change their status from a limited one to a public limited company (Plc)
The changes means that KPLC is no longer a private limited company but a public limited company (PLC).
Both the Public Limited Company and the Private Limited Company raise their capital through shares. However, the difference is that PLC can quote the shares in a stock exchange whereas the Ltd Company cannot.
The Electricity Company which was listed on the Nairobi Stock Exchange in 2010 and has been trading as a private limited company will now be able to quote its shares on the stock exchange unlike before.
The company will now be able to transfer shares freely without consulting the owners.
An official at KPLC told Opera News Kenya the changes will not affect the shareholding structure of the company.
KPLC, also known as Kenya Power, has interests in geothermal, hydro and thermal power generation, as well as power generated from solar and wind sources.
The company transmits, distributes and retails electricity to customers throughout the country and is a national electric utility company; managing electric metering, licensing and billing.
It also provides optic fibre connectivity to telecommunication companies, through an optical fibre cable network, that runs along high voltage power lines across the country and feeds into the national power grid.
As of 2018, it had 6 million customers.