Tanzanian billionaire, Rostam Aziz, is poised to disrupt Kenya's cooking gas market with his plans to set up a plant in the country.
Rostam, the owner of Taifa Gas, submitted his bid to enter Kenya's market, but the process stalled owing to protracted court battles between the two neighbouring countries.
His entrance into Kenya's market follows a deal struck by former President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Tanzanian counterpart, Samia Suluhu Hassan, that eased the cost and process of doing business in either countries.
Rostam's firm - which is set to build a gas plant and storage facility - is set to become one of the biggest plants in the country.
Currently, refilling a 6kg cooking gas cylinder cost Ksh1,540, while a 13kg cylinder cost Ksh3,330. His company is also set to offer competition and lead to a reduction of prices.
According to data from Statista, the domestic consumption of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in the country recorded a sharp increase to 326 thousand metric tons in 2020.
In 2019, LPG consumption in the country stood at 312 thousand metric tons. This growth demonstrated an upward trajectory in demand for cooking gas and Rostam wanted to get a share of the market.
Taifa Gas has not issued a statement on the standoff with the Kenyan government that has seen the licensing of the firm delayed.
In 2019, Rostam built liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage and filling facility in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The facility is said to have cost him Ksh7.7 billion.
The plant was commissioned by the late Tanzanian President John Pombe Joseph Magufuli.
"Since 60 per cent of the country's population lives in rural areas and depends on charcoal and firewood as the main sources of energy, promoting gas use should play a key role in addressing environmental degradation,” the late Magufuli stated during the commissioning of the plant.
According to Forbes 2015, Rostam was worth Ksh109 billion (USD900 million) at the time.
The American business magazine, which listed Rostam among the 50 richest individuals in Africa, further revealed that he owned nearly 18 per cent of Vodacom Tanzania, a mobile phone services provider.
In 2014, Rostam was reported to have sold 17 per cent of the phone company shares to a South African firm.
"The transaction allows Vodacom to increase its exposure to one of Vodacom’s key investments in sub-Saharan Africa. Vodacom Tanzania has been Vodacom’s most successful investment outside of South Africa to date," the company's statement read in part at the time.
Forbes further detailed that the tycoon owns a mining company and a real estate firm in Dubai and Oman.
