The State Department for Petroleum has explained why the Energy Petroleum and Regulatory Authority (EPRA) cannot set equal pump prices across the 47 counties.
Speaking during the public sector hearing for the 2024/2025 Fiscal Year (FY) and medium-term budget on Thursday, Dismus Ogot, who was representing Principal Secretary Mohamed Liban, noted that the model used by the authority had to account for transportation costs to various regions.
He noted that EPRA also inputs other charges for the fuel transported through the pipeline.
Given that the cost of the pipeline charges vary depending on the distance of transportation, far regions such as Western Kenya and Turkana are bound to have higher pump prices than those around Nairobi and Mombasa
"The same pricing cannot be practically possible in the country because there are transportation costs and handling charges that EPRA would incorporate into the price determination for various regions.
"These charges are passed to the pump prices," he stated, explaining why Kenyans in select areas suffer more at the pump.
However, Ogot acknowledged that many Kenyans from the affected regions had raised concerns over the current model used to calculate pump prices.
The concerns, according to the officials, will be used in determining the next model used to draft fuel prices.
On the other hand, Ogot refuted claims that motorists were charged differently for the 16 per cent VAT, acknowledging that it is charged once the fuel products land at the Port of Mombasa.
Currently, different regions in the country have different pump prices.
During the November 2023 review, Super Petrol prices for Mombasa, Nairobi and Kisumu were set at Ksh214.30, Ksh217.36 and Ksh217.12, respectively.
The highest prices were set for Kibish in Turkana, where residents purchased petrol at Ksh225.77.
Meanwhile, EPRA is set to release the December - January 2024 pump prices later today.
