You have a customer in Nairobi who wants a solar water heater fitted. The equipment is available, and you know someone who can install it. Then the customer asks for your EPRA licence.
Your business registration certificate will not answer that question.
To get a solar water heating contractor licence in Kenya, you need to apply to the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA), choose the appropriate class and provide the required business and technical documents. The person doing the installation also needs the relevant worker’s licence.
This guide explains how those requirements fit together under the Energy (Solar Water Heating) Regulations, 2025, Legal Notice No. 115.
What does the licence cover?
Solar water heaters use sunlight to heat water. Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems generate electricity and have a separate licensing framework.
The 2025 Regulations cover businesses importing, manufacturing, selling, installing, repairing or maintaining solar water heating systems and components. A retailer should therefore check the rules even if someone else handles its installations.
Before applying, decide what your business will actually do. Selling equipment, installing household systems and manufacturing components do not all lead to the same application.
The business licence and the worker’s licence
EPRA licenses both the business taking on the work and the individual carrying it out. These licences have different class names.
| Worker class | Work it authorises |
|---|---|
| SHW1 | Installation, testing, commissioning, maintenance and repair of standalone or single-unit solar water heating systems. |
| SHW2 | The same activities for both single-unit and centralised solar water heating systems. |
For the business, the Regulations recognise SHC1 and SHC2 contractor classes and an SHM manufacturer class. SHC1 expressly covers importing and selling components and working on standalone or single-unit systems. SHM covers manufacturing and selling systems or components, including importing parts for assembly and sale.
An SHC1 contractor must itself hold, or employ someone holding, an SHW1 licence. An SHC2 contractor must itself hold, or employ someone holding, an SHW2 licence. You do not necessarily have to become the licensed technician yourself, but your business must meet the staffing requirement.
There is a drafting problem worth knowing about. Regulation 9 repeats the SHC1 label and description where a second contractor class would be expected, while its staffing provisions and fee schedule expressly recognise SHC2. For a centralised project, ask EPRA to confirm the scope of the SHC2 authorisation you need before bidding or accepting the work.
Documents to prepare before applying
For a new contractor, vendor or importer application, EPRA’s application guide lists the following:
- Your certificate of incorporation or business registration certificate. The Regulations call for a certified copy.
- A certified CR12 or CR13, as applicable, issued within the past year.
- Certified national ID or passport copies for all company directors.
- For foreign directors working in Kenya, a certified valid Class G work permit; for foreign directors living outside Kenya, a notarised declaration of non-residence.
- The business’s Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) PIN certificate and a valid tax compliance certificate.
- A valid county business permit. The Regulations specify a certified copy.
- Proof that the business occupies its stated office, such as suitable lease or ownership documents.
- A copy of the relevant solar water heating worker’s licence.
- A signed consent letter between the contractor and the worker, attested by a Commissioner for Oaths. It must state an engagement period of at least one year.
Check the dates and details before uploading. An expired permit or an old CR12 can hold up an otherwise straightforward application. EPRA’s guide also says your instruments and tools will be checked during a licensing inspection, for which you will be notified.
How much does the licence cost?
EPRA’s Citizens’ Service Delivery Charter separates the application fee, grant fee and annual renewal fee:
| Business class | Application | Grant | Annual renewal |
|---|---|---|---|
| SHC1 | KSh 2,000 | KSh 1,500 | KSh 1,500 |
| SHC2 | KSh 3,000 | KSh 2,000 | KSh 2,000 |
| SHM | KSh 3,000 | KSh 2,000 | KSh 2,000 |
For an SHC1 application, that means budgeting KSh 3,500 for the application and grant charges listed in the charter. County permits, insurance and preparing your documents are separate costs.
The Regulations’ Third Schedule and EPRA’s application guide present application and annual licence fees, without a separate grant-fee column. Because the official documents describe the charges differently, check the bill generated by the portal and ask EPRA to clarify any difference before paying. Do not assume the application fee is the full cost.
How to apply online
- Start on EPRA’s official website. Go to epra.go.ke and follow the renewable-energy licence application link under Electricity & Renewable Energy.
- Create or sign in to a business account. EPRA’s guide distinguishes business accounts from individual worker accounts. Activate a new account through the email it sends you.
- Select the correct solar water heating category. Choose the contractor, vendor or importer route for those business activities. Manufacturers and individual workers have separate routes. Some captions in the contractor guide repeat the word “manufacturer”, so check the licence type in the portal rather than relying on that caption.
- Complete the application details. Enter the business and directors’ information, licensed worker details and relevant work experience. The guide also asks for at least two referees, including one licensed individual.
- Upload the documents. Use clear scans and check that names and registration details agree across the records.
- Generate and pay the application bill. The guide uses a “Compute Bill” button, followed by an e-Citizen payment process. Follow the current portal instructions and keep the receipt.
- Submit the application. Payment alone does not complete submission. Keep the confirmation and reference number, and respond to any inspection or information requests.
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How long does EPRA take?
Regulation 11 requires EPRA to process a new contractor, vendor, importer or manufacturer application and communicate the outcome within 30 days of receipt. Individual worker applications and worker upgrades have a 60-day period. Licence renewals have a 30-day period.
An outcome is not a promise of approval. Avoid fixing an installation date on the assumption that submitting the application means your licence is assured.
What happens after approval?
A licence can be valid for up to three years. Check the expiry date on yours and the applicable annual payments. Apply for renewal at least 30 days before it expires.
Licensed contractors must maintain insurance for the work they undertake and follow the relevant Kenyan standards and building, health, safety and environmental requirements.
Before installation, the licensee must give the customer a system design declaration with drawings and calculations. Both parties must sign it before work starts. After installation, provide the required completion documents, manuals and warranties. The Regulations require a one-year workmanship warranty, alongside the applicable component warranties.
There are reporting and record-keeping duties too, including retaining the installation and equipment records covered by Regulation 24 for five years. Build these tasks into how you run each job.
Can you start work while waiting for the licence?
Do not treat a submitted application as permission to carry out work that requires a licence.
Regulation 28 makes unlicensed solar water heating activities an offence. On conviction, the maximum penalty is KSh 100,000, six months’ imprisonment, or both. Regulation 29 also lists a daily KSh 1,000 penalty for practising without a licence.
How this fits with your other approvals
Before taking on a solar water heating job, check what your existing approvals cover. Business registration, a county permit and a solar PV licence each need to be considered separately from the EPRA authorisation for this work.
1. Business registration and county permits
Registration establishes your business. It does not replace the EPRA licence required for regulated solar water heating activities. Your county permit is another document to arrange separately.
2. An existing solar PV licence
Solar PV and solar water heating have separate licensing requirements. If you already hold a PV licence, confirm with EPRA which solar water heating authorisations your business and workers need.
Before you accept the first job
Write down the services you plan to offer, confirm the licence class with EPRA and check the worker’s licence. Then gather the business records and consent letter before opening the application.
Need help organising your company’s registration and compliance records? Talk to Startpal about the paperwork your business needs.
Requirements checked on 30 October 2026 against EPRA’s published Regulations, application guide and service charter. Confirm the current requirements and charges with EPRA before applying.
