Fuel prices to drop going forward - President Ruto

 

President William Ruto has told Kenyans that fuel prices are set to drop in December.

Speaking in Kirinyaga on Saturday, Ruto said his administration has been looking into ways on how the prices can be dropped.

"Bei ya mafuta sasa tumeanza kushughulikia. Bei ya mafuta imepanda kila mahali lakini kama Kenya tulifanya mpango. Tumetafuta namna ya kuhakikisha kwamba bei isipite mahali ambapo Wakenya wengi wataumia," he said.

"Mmeona kwanza mwezi huu hio bei imeanza sasa kuteremka, mwezi ujao itateremka zaidi mwezi huo nyingi namna hio hio," Ruto added.

This translates to: We have started looking at fuel prices . The price of fuel has increased but in Kenya we have a plan. We have looked at ways to ensure that the prices doesn't exceed a limit where many Kenyans will hurt.

You have seen that this month the prices have started to decrease, next month it will go down even further.

Fuel consumers were in October paying Sh217.36 for a litre of petrol, Sh205.47 for diesel and Sh204.46 for kerosene in Nairobi.

The prices remained unchanged for a litre of petrol in the November-December cycle while diesel and kerosene dropped by Sh2.

Epra Director General Daniel Kiptoo noted that consumers would not bear the burden despite the average landed cost of imported super petrol having increased by 2.81 per cent per cubic metre in October, diesel by 3.28 per cent and kerosene by 6.31 per cent.

"In order to cushion consumers from the spike in pump prices as a consequence of the landed costs, the government has opted to stabilise pump prices for the November-December 2023 pricing cycle. The National Treasury has identified resources within the current resource envelope to compensate oil marketing companies," he said in a statement on Tuesday evening. 

A litre of petrol is therefore retailing at Sh217.36 per in Nairobi, Sh203.47 for diesel while kerosene is going for Sh203.06.

The prices will remain in effect until December 14 at midnight when a new pricing cycle will take effect.

Interestingly, Tanzania's Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority (EWURA) announced a decrease in the price of petroleum products early this month.

EWURA Director-General James A. Mwainyekule stated that the adjustments in petroleum product prices in November 2023 are primarily attributable to a 5.68% fall in global oil prices.

He added that the changes are also a result of a decrease in premiums for the importation of petroleum products by an average of 13 per cent for PMS (gasoline) and 25 per cent for Automotive Gas Oil (AGO).

However, Energy Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir has attributed the disparity in fuel prices between Kenya and Tanzania to what he termed a "lag effect" during the price computation of oil products in the two countries.

A week ago, Kenyans raised questions after Tanzania announced a drop in fuel prices whereas Chirchir warned that fuel prices could hit the Sh300 mark per litre due to the Israel-Gaza conflict.

But in a statement on Thursday, the CS said the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (Epra) computed fuel prices for the November-December cycle based on fuel cargoes procured in September but discharged at the Port of Mombasa between October 10 and November 9.

"In the pricing cycle, Epra considered two super petrol cargoes priced September 2023, four diesel cargoes priced September 2023, and two fuel cargoes of JetA1 (kerosene) one priced September 2023 and November 2023," he said.

"It is intrusive to note that the September 2023 Platts prices were the highest in the last 12 months," he added.

BY THE STAR