NAIROBI: Motorists have one more month to enjoy relatively cheaper fuel prices at the pump before the new taxes kick in.
In its monthly fuel review, the energy sector regulator increased the prices of super petrol by Sh1.92 per litre, diesel by 3.34 per litre while Kerosene prices went up Sh3.82 per litre.
“In calculating the maximum allowed pump price for Kerosene, the Commission did not take into account the recently increased excise duty due to the fact that the cargo that was used in the computations completed product discharge on 30th May 2016 whereas the new excise for kerosene was effective from 10th June 2016,” The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said in a statement yesterday.
ERC said it was in consultation with the Kenya Revenue Authority and the Kenya Roads Board to establish the implementation date for the increase in road maintenance levy.
Diesel will now retail at Sh73.71 in Nairobi, petrol will sell for Sh86.17 a litre while kerosene will retail at a maximum of Sh50.8.
Motorists in Mombasa will buy diesel at Sh70.36, petrol at Sh82.78 and kerosene will sell at Sh47.98 a litre. In Kisumu, it will now cost Sh75.94 to buy a litre of diesel, Sh88.21a litre of petrol and Sh52.77
Their counterparts in Eldoret will buy the same litre of diesel at Sh75.87, petrol at Sh88.15 and kerosene at Sh52.78 for every liter bought.
The difference in prices is created by transport costs from Mombasa. This makes consumers further away from the port to buy fuel at the most expensive rates.
For instance, it will cost Sh78.03 for diesel, Sh90.3 for petrol and Sh54.86 for a litre of kerosene for consumers in Isebania.
ERC said the increase was as a consequence of the average landed cost of imported Super Petrol which increased by 3.64 per cent from $ 472.95 per ton in April 2016 to $ 490.18 per ton in May 2016.
These figures are set to increase by at least Sh6 per liter for consumers of diesel and petrol when ERC makes adjustments for the increase in road maintenance levy.
In his budget, Treasury secretary Henry Rotich proposed to increase the Road Maintenance Levy from Sh12 per litre to Sh18 per litre.
On their part, users of Kerosene will see an increment of Sh7.20 per litre for every litre consumed when excise tax is loaded on their prices.
Government scrapped Excise duty on kerosene was in 2011 in a bid to cushion low income earners against high prices for the same, thus improving their standards of living.
But Rotich reversed this decision last week on grounds that it had been abused by unscrupulous traders who mix kerosene with other fuels especially diesel and then sell the same as pure diesel at the market prices realising higher margins.
