Tough times as Epra hikes kerosene and diesel prices
FUEL: The cost of living for households using Kerosene for cooking will increase, following a spike in the pump price of the commodity by Sh3.56 per litre.
In the latest oil prices review by Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (Epra), diesel has also been adjusted upwards by Sh4.57 per litre.
The new prices take effect at midnight, and will last for the next 30 days to February 15, 2020.
In the new price structure, the regulator has also marginally adjusted the price of super petrol by 0.17 per litre.
Epra attributed the changes in price to an increase in average landing costs of the product across the board.
Epra said the landing cost of imported super petrol increased by 1.5 per cent from $318.71 (Sh35,067) per cubic metre in November 2020 to $323.52 (Sh35,596) per cubic metre in December 2020, same to diesel whose which rose by 13.05 per cent from $293.88 (Sh32,335) per cubic metre to $332.22 (Sh36,554) per cubic metre, while Kerosene rose by 9.27 per cent to $302.97 (Sh33,335) from $277.27 (Sh30,508).
Motorists in Nairobi
Consequently, motorists in Nairobi will pay Sh106.99, Sh96.40 and 87.12 for a litre of super petrol, diesel and kerosene respectively.
In Mombasa, a litre of petrol will retail at Sh104.60, with motorists paying diesel at a rate of Sh94.01 and kerosene Sh84.75.
In Nakuru, a litre of petrol will go for Sh106.69 while that of diesel and kerosen will retail at Sh96.31 and Sh87.08 respectively.
In Eldoret, the commodity will retail at Sh107.62 per litre for petrol while diesel will sell at Sh97.23 and kerosene at Sh88 per litre, while in the lakeside town of Kisumu, a litre of super petrol will cost Sh107.61 per litre with diesel and paraffin retailing at Sh97.23 and 87.99 per litre.
“The free on board(FOB) price of Murban crude oil lifted inDecember was posted at $49.57 (Sh5,454) per barrel, an increase of 15.17 per cent from $43.04 (Sh4735.69) per barrel in November 2020,” said acting Director-General Kiptoo Bargoria.
Bargoria said over the same period, the mean monthly US dollar to the Kenya shiling exchange rate depreciated by 0.14 per cent from Sh110.36 per barrel US Dollar in November 2020 to Sh110.52 per US Dollar in December 2020.
The higher costs look set to erode the purchasing power of households, push up operating costs for transporters and farmers, who could then pass the additional costs on to consumers, triggering a wave of inflation.
For the thousands of farmers, who use tractors to prepare their land, an increase in the cost of diesel means a rise in the cost of ploughing that could force huge cutbacks on acreage under crops. – Noel Wandera
