President William Ruto has today commissioned the MV Uhuru II at the Kenya Shipyards Limited in Kisumu County.
Its first voyage on Lake Victoria will take place soon after the grand launch, a move eagerly anticipated by fuel transporters to neighbouring East African countries.
The MV Uhuru II is the first ship built entirely in Kenya. The completion of the Sh2.4 billion ship officially establishes Kenya as the leader in shipbuilding in East and Central Africa.
The vessel was built and assembled in Kenya, saving Kenyan taxpayers Sh1.3 billion in imports.
The 1,800-ton MV Uhuru II was built at the Kenya Ship Yard by Kenyan agencies, including the Kenya Defence Forces, in collaboration with a Dutch firm, Damen Shipyards.
The ship is expected to supplement the MV Uhuru I, which had a capacity of 1260 tonnes and was delivered to Kenya in 1966 by a Scottish company.
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta visited Kisumu Port on August 2, 2022, to supervise the ship’s floatation and to commission the shipyard.
The 100-meter vessel, which has a capacity of two million litres of crude oil per trip, can comfortably transport 22 waggons across the lake.
According to Kenya Shipyard Managing Director Brigadier Paul Otieno Owuor, the ship can sail to neighbouring Uganda and Tanzania in 10 hours.
The load capacity is slightly higher than that of the MV Uhuru I, which has a capacity of 1.1 million litres and a speed of 17 hours to Port Bell Uganda.
Apart from expanding export opportunities, the facility is expected to provide job opportunities for locals.
