The expected closure of the refinery was long overdue

The news of the impending closure of the Kenya Petroleum Refinery has sent tongues wagging and certainly for good measure. The Mombasa-based facility is the only one in Eastern Africa — and whose strategic importance therefore spans national boundaries.

The facility — owned 50-50 by India’s Essar Energy and the Kenyan Government — imports crude oil from the Persian Gulf from which it processes liquefied petroleum gas, unleaded premium gasoline, regular petrol, automotive gas oil, industrial diesel, fuel oil and special products like bitumen and grease.