The Role of Strategic Energy Management on Cost Control in Kenya’s Tea Industry- Survey of Tea Factories in Kericho and Bomet Counties

This study investigated the effect of strategic energy management on cost control in the tea industry in Kenya. Business organizations work on reducing or controlling expenses as a pathway to competitiveness. Tea industry is under threat from a host of challenges including high cost of production, turbulent markets and climate change. New proponents on energy management suggest its adoption, as a strategic approach to minimizing costs and enhancing competitiveness, as successfully implemented in developed countries. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of strategic energy management in cost control tea industry in Kenya. Using descriptive survey design, the researcher assessed the views of a sample population consisting of 120 people directly tasked in handling energy management operations in the 30 tea factories registered and operating in Kericho and Bomet Counties. Purposive sampling technique was used. Four objectives guided the study. These were assessed as variables. Data was captured using structured questionnaire with a Likert scaling as score. Data was analyzed using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) V20.0 to generate descriptive and inferential statistics. Tests were done using Pearson’s correlation at 95% confidence level and Pearson’s product moment correlation (r) derived to show nature and strength of relationship of the variables where coefficient of determination (R²) used to measure the amount of variation in the dependent variable explained by the independent variable. Statistical results confirmed a strong positive correlation of 0.863, between strategic energy management and cost control. Significance test in the range -0.05 and +0.05 observed that the relationship is significant for all the independent variables, with significance values all lying between -0.05 and +0.05, thus all the variables significantly affected cost. The study concluded that strategic energy management improves operation control leading to continuity in process operations with improved quality, productivity, production cycle, employee morale and reduced plant stoppage and product loss. This positively impact on cost control in tea industry. The study was thus important as it provides more data on strategic energy management in tea industry which is gradually becoming of interest on individual, corporate, governmental and non-governmental organizations and entities, especially on addressing business improvement, global warming and climate change thus benefits tea industry managers, business organizations, researchers and policy makers.