Kenya’s Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) wants the use of kerosene phased out from the East African country, urging the ministries of Treasury and Energy to hike its cost to make push its users to abandon it.
ERC said the consumption of kerosene in the country is ever increasing and needs to be drastically cut in favour of clean fuels, solar for lighting and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for cooking.
“The commission has been engaging the two ministries with the aim of overcoming the problem of fuel adulteration. Currently, the country consumes about 33 million litres of kerosene monthly when ideally it should be less than five million litres,” local Daily Nation newspaper quotes ERC Director General Pavel Oimeke to have said.
Oimeke said the cheap cost of kerosene in Kenya has prompted some unscrupulous petroleum dealers to adulterate other products by mixing them with kerosene before selling to unsuspecting motorists.
“As a result we have about 27 million litres of kerosene that goes into vehicles which are damaging our vehicles and affecting the export markets. We are losing outside markets such as Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and parts of Tanzania who have not been buying from us due to the alteration of quality of the product,” Oimeke said.
Kerosene is the most used petroleum product in Kenya’s rural setups, where it is mainly used for cooking and lighting.
Daily Nation also reports Consumers’ Federation of Kenya secretary general Stephen Mutoro to have supported the move, saying it would save the country from health hazards associated with usage of kerosene. He however urged for a smooth to shield consumers.
