The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
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While the late Raila Odinga was celebrated for his towering political influence, he was also a strategic entrepreneur who quietly built a broad and successful business portfolio cutting across energy, manufacturing, agriculture, and real estate.
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The former Prime Minister, who passed away in India following a suspected cardiac arrest, strongly believed in keeping business separate from politics — a principle that enabled his enterprises to thrive despite Kenya’s often volatile political climate.
Be Energy Limited
Among the Odinga family’s most notable investments is Be Energy Limited, a leading oil marketing company with operations across Kenya.
Industry records show the Odinga family owns about 35 percent of the company through Pan African Petroleum Company Ltd, alongside a major Saudi Arabian investor.
Be Energy has steadily risen in the ranks to become Kenya’s fifth-largest oil marketer in the 2024/25 financial year, competing with top players such as Vivo Energy (Shell) and TotalEnergies. The company also exports petroleum products to neighbouring Uganda and Tanzania.
East African Spectre
Raila’s foray into the energy sector began in the 1970s when he established East African Spectre, a pioneering firm that manufactures Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinders. To date, it remains one of the few indigenous cylinder manufacturers in Kenya.
Agriculture and Real Estate
Beyond the energy sector, Odinga invested heavily in agriculture through his Opoda Farm in Bondo, Siaya County, where he cultivated maize and kept livestock.
In the real estate space, the Odinga family, through LV Marina, unveiled an ambitious plan earlier this year for a Sh120 billion mixed-use development in Kisumu, in partnership with GulfCap Real Estate.
