For Nelson Amenya, Adani Group’s “secret” attempt to take over Kenya’s main airport in a $1.85bn leasing proposal was always “one big red flag”.
Now, the MBA student who exposed the Indian conglomerate’s proposal to run Nairobi’s international airport for 30 years, feels vindicated after the plan became a casualty of US criminal charges against Gautam Adani.
“We did it!!! Adios Adani!!!” he said on social media after President William Ruto tore up $2.6bn in proposed deals with companies owned by one of India’s richest men, who is accused by US prosecutors of involvement in a $265mn bribery scheme.
Ruto said in a televised address to the nation on Thursday that he had told officials to “immediately cancel” the proposal for the Adani group to expand Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, as well as a $736mn investment in power lines.
The reversal of the Kenyan government’s support for Adani’s involvement in infrastructure projects was “based on new information provided by our investigative agencies and partner nations”, he said.
Kenya’s decision underlined the global ramifications for Adani’s companies after he was indicted for allegedly overseeing kickbacks to win business in India. It is another blow to the group just as it was seeking to rebuild its reputation after a short seller accused it of stock-price manipulation and fraud last year. Adani Group has said the US charges are “baseless”.
The plan for Adani to refurbish and run one of Africa’s busiest travel hubs was part of a strategy to expand its presence on the continent, which had already led to it investing in a port and proposing a $900mn power lines project in Tanzania. Adani is also exploring projects in Morocco, Egypt and Zambia.
But it was the proposed arrangement with Kenya’s aviation authority that thrust Adani into the spotlight as the country was also reeling from mass protests over tax increases. Local critics accused the company and the government of opacity in their dealings.
For Kenyan officials, the proposed deal was touted as a way to fix key infrastructure without adding to the country’s debt, which takes up about 70 per cent of government revenue to service.
But when Amenya exposed the proposal, which was leaked to him by government officials in July, it sparked protests and an online campaign with hashtags #stopadani and #rejectadani.
“Kenya is in a tight spot and I think Adani took advantage of it,” Amenya told the Financial Times.
Even before last week’s developments in the US, the problems in Kenya had led to the Adani group souring on its broader Africa expansion plans, which were also seen as key to India’s geopolitical ambitions.
“It’s not worth it,” said a person close to Adani. “We just walked into the middle of a brawl” the person added, referring to the protests that forced Ruto to drop the proposed tax measures in June.
Kenya’s High Court had temporarily blocked the planned airport concession in September and last month the power line proposal between an Adani subsidiary and state-owned utility Ketraco.
Faith Odhiambo, president of the Law Society of Kenya, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuits that have stalled the projects, said the proposals were characterised by a lack of transparency.
Amenya also criticised Adani for submitting a “privately initiated proposal” for the airport concession, rather than competing in an open bidding process. However, the person close to Adani said it was Kenyan officials who raised the option of bypassing a tender process.
The plan was also controversial with local activists because it did not oblige Adani to upgrade the existing runway until 2048 or to build a second one unless a jump in passenger traffic justifies the investment. That was despite the government having previously said this would be needed.
They were also incensed by a clause that would have given the Indian company an 18 per cent equity stake in the airport even after the concession period had expired.
Local analysts also feared that a recent decision by Adani Power to cut electricity supplies to Bangladesh over an unpaid bill of $800mn could be the harbinger for Kenya if the country partners with the company to build power lines and power stations.
The Kenyan furore was just one sour note in Adani’s patchy international strategy, which has seen his conglomerate set up port projects in Israel and Sri Lanka, while also courting neighbours such as Bhutan.
It pulled out of Myanmar last year following a military coup in 2021, while its ports and renewable project agreements in Sri Lanka fuelled local resentment and led the new government in Colombo to reconsider approving a wind project.
Adani has expanded his businesses in tandem with development goals set by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whom he has known since the premier’s days as chief minister of their home state of Gujarat.
Modi urged Indian corporates to become “multinational” soon after taking office in 2014, although Adani has always denied receiving preferential treatment from the government. India sees opportunities for its companies from Africa’s natural resources and growing population.
Deals such as those being pursued by Adani can help India expand its influence despite lacking the financial firepower to compete with China in the global south, said Pramit Pal Chaudhuri, south Asia practice head at Eurasia Group.
“There are almost no other companies in India with the scale or the capacity to build billion-dollar ports in far-flung parts of the world,” Chaudhuri said.
Adani only came to Kenya because officials in the country had invited the group to consider investing in the refurbishment of the port in Mombasa and to look at the country’s transmission network, the person close to the company said. The airport project only came up later, they added.
“The main problem with this Adani enterprise has to do with the process — it was never open and transparent,” said Moses Ndiema, secretary-general of Kenya’s aviation workers union, whose members were among airport workers who went on strike in September chanting “Adani must go”.
Their wishes have come true and Amenya was showered with online accolades both in Kenya and India after Ruto’s decision.
“Adani will fall soon!” he said.