Kenyan President William Ruto and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Kaguta Museveni have officially launched the construction of the Sh650 billion Naivasha–Kisumu–Malaba Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), marking a major step in regional infrastructure development.
Speaking at the launch in Kisumu County on Saturday, President Ruto also revealed details of the high-stakes negotiations that led to Uganda acquiring shares in the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC).
Ruto disclosed that President Museveni had initially pushed for a 50 percent stake in KPC—an ambitious proposal that would have given Uganda a larger share than Kenya, which currently retains 35 percent.
The demand sparked intense negotiations, with weeks of back-and-forth discussions before a compromise was reached.
According to Ruto, he personally intervened in the talks, engaging Museveni directly to strike a deal. The final agreement saw Uganda settle for a 21 percent stake in the strategic pipeline company.
Museveni had argued that Uganda deserved a larger share, noting that about 40 percent of the pipeline’s transport volume is destined for Uganda.
Despite accepting a smaller stake, Ruto indicated that Uganda could return to the market in the future to acquire additional shares.
“I want to thank you, Mzee. When you inquired about the pipeline, with the intention of Uganda wanting to acquire 50 percent, I managed to talk to you, and we reached an agreement that we begin with a few stakes, which you accepted,” Ruto said.
Earlier, on March 4, Kenya Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi announced that Kenyans and local institutional investors had purchased 7.9 billion shares in the KPC Initial Public Offer (IPO), with strong participation from regional investors, including Uganda and Rwanda.
Out of the 12.4 billion shares offered at Ksh9 each, East African Community (EAC) member states acquired a combined 3.8 billion shares—equivalent to a 21.22 percent regional bloc stake.
Despite the significant regional uptake, Kenya maintains a controlling 35 percent stake, while local investors hold approximately 67.32 percent of the IPO, ensuring continued domestic influence over the company.
KPC, which was listed on March 10 on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, is now the seventh most valuable stock on the market, with a capitalisation of Ksh165 billion, about 4.7 percent of the NSE equity market.
