A new plan is being set out for the highway project between Nairobi and Mombasa in Kenya. Work has been carried out on some sections of the highway route planned to link Kenya’s largest city and capital, Nairobi, with its major port and second city, Mombasa.
The latest plan by the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) is that the new highway will retain the alignment of the existing route. This will reduce the need for more land to be bought. The project is expected to cost $3.63 billion and is being handled under the PPP model. Much of the funding is being supplied via Everstrong Capital. However, a new Project Development Report will now be needed to meet Kenya’s PPP Committee requirements.
The new highway connecting Nairobi and Mombasa has been planned for several years. The project has been stalled on more than one occasion, with one major international contractor having withdrawn from working on the highway previously. The project is of major economic importance for Kenya as the existing transport link between the two cities carries a high percentage of heavy trucks and is no longer able to cope with the traffic volumes it handles and nor does it provide a sufficiently safe connection for road users.
Meanwhile, work is being carried out for the new flyover linking Ngong road and Naivasha road in Nairobi. The steel framework is complete and the concrete deck now has to be constructed. A loan worth $27.7 million provide by the Spanish Corporate International Fund (FIEM) is providing the financing. Construction is being carried out by a Spanish contractor that previously built the Thika Superhighway flyover.
