Kabira & another v Kenya Power & Lighting Company Limited (Environment and Land Case 8 of 2021) [2025] KEELC 8444 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya Power was ordered to remove power lines from private land and pay KES 20 million in damages for trespassing without the owner's permission.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the Defendant trespassed on the suit property
The Defendant committed trespass by erecting high voltage power lines on the Plaintiffs' land without their permission
The Plaintiffs held title to the suit property since 2012. The Defendant's own County Business Manager admitted in writing on 30th March 2021 that the power line had been constructed about half a meter inside the Plaintiffs' land. Photographs corroborated this. The later unilateral survey by the Defendant's witnesses was disbelieved as they excluded the Plaintiffs. Sections 46 and 47(1) of the Energy Act, 2019 required prior permission, which was never sought or obtained.
Whether the Plaintiffs were entitled to the special damages claimed (professional fees and loss of profits)
Both heads of claim failed for lack of proof and speculation
The professional fees claim was a self-generated fee note addressed by the 1st Plaintiff to himself and his own unregistered entity, unsupported by receipts or evidence of services actually rendered. The loss of profits claim of Kshs. 66,000,000/- was speculative since the housing project had not been approved by any authority and no actuarial or expert reports supported the projected figures.
The measure of general damages for trespass
General damages of Kshs. 20,000,000/- awarded
Trespass being actionable per se, damages follow without proof of specific loss. There being no mathematical formula, the award depends on the circumstances of each case. The Defendant erected the lines in 2014, was informed of the trespass and tacitly acknowledged it in writing, but had done nothing to remedy the situation to date, justifying a substantial award of Kshs. 20,000,000/- rather than the Kshs. 30,000,000/- proposed by the Plaintiffs.
Legal principles established
#- Before surveying or using another person's land to lay electricity power lines, prior permission of the owner must be obtained under sections 46 and 47(1) of the Energy Act, 2019
- Trespass to land is actionable per se and a claimant need not prove specific damage or loss to be awarded damages
Court orders
#- 1.An order compelling the Defendant to forthwith remove the offending posts and electric cables from land parcel No. Mweiga/Thungare/Block 1/Kamiru/193
- 2.The Defendant ordered to pay the Plaintiffs Kshs. 20,000,000/= as general damages for trespass
- 3.The Defendant to bear the costs of the suit
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Original civil jurisdiction over the claim for trespass to land (Environment and Land Court); no specific constitutional/statutory provision invoked in the judgment
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Kabira & another v Kenya Power & Lighting Company Limited (Environment and Land Case 8 of 2021) [2025] KEELC 8444 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Not stated in the judgment as provided. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2025/8444/eng@2025-12-04
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.