Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) dealers and suppliers in Kenya have begun increasing the commodity prices due to the shortage of global supply of the commodity as Russia continues her offense against Ukraine.
For example, Rubis Kenya announced its new LPG refill prices will go high, adding on top to the pain an ordinary Kenyan is feeling due to the high cost of living.
Kenyans will now pay Ksh.1560 to refill a 6 kg gas cylinder from the lows of Ksh.1441. The 13kg refill will go for Ksh.3340 from Ksh.3113. The 35kg gas refill dealer price is Ksh.8192 as Kenyans will pay Ksh.8760.
The gas prices have tremendously been on the rise since 2016 when the price of a 13kg cylinder shot to Ksh.2000.
By October 2020, the price for refilling a 13kg cylinder went for Ksh.2445 and in November 2021 it went for Ksh.2513.
The price increase was initially caused by a reintroduction of a 16 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) on LPG, which was scrapped in 2016 to relieve the economic burden on ordinary Kenyans.
“The exorbitant cost of LPG on high taxes and Levies have eroded the gains on health and the environment. Increasingly, people are reverting to cooking with firewood, charcoal and Kerosene. “This is not only an economic burden but a clear indication that Kenyans are staring at a health crisis,” said Stephen Mutoro, the Secretary-General of the Consumers Federation of Kenya(COFEK).
The decision to increase gas prices by Rubis Kenya can be attributed to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Russia is the world’s second-largest natural gas producer. Russia has also been accused of intentionally disrupting gas supplies to leverage its role as a major energy supplier.
Two weeks ago, the invasion caused a spike in oil prices as a barrel went for more than Ksh. 11,395.
An increase in gas prices adds to the inflation crisis and the rising food prices. This is despite the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) indicating that the inflation rate in February eased to 5.07 percent from 5.37 percent in January.
