Fuel prices rise in November review

The cost per litre of petrol and diesel have gone up by Sh2.38 and Sh3.11 due to higher crude costs last month, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has announced in its latest price review.

Motorists in Nairobi will now pay Sh118.11 for a litre of super petrol and Sh112.83 for diesel, hitting pockets hard at a time when the cost of living is already going up due to a raft of tax changes enacted in September.

The cost of kerosene has also gone up, by Sh2.99 to Sh111.83 per litre.

The ERC said the price of crude in October, when the consignment hitting the market now was ordered, had gone up to $82.3 per barrel from $80.35 in September, hence the price increase.

“The changes in this month’s prices have been as a consequence of the average landed cost of imported super petrol increasing by 4.02 per cent from $729.04 per ton in September to $758.34 per tonne in October.

"Diesel increased by 5.84 per cent from $700.41 to $741.33, and kerosene by 5.8 per cent from $721.64 to $763.47,” said ERC in the notice.

WEAK CURRENCY
A weaker shilling has also weighed in on the pump price, since it now costs importers more in shillings to buy the dollars needed to import the fuel.

Motorists in Mandera will continue to pay the highest cost for fuel in the country, at Sh130.97 for petrol and Sh125.69 for diesel — mainly due to distance from the Port of Mombasa — while those at the coastal city will pay the lowest at Sh115.48 and Sh110.21 for petrol and diesel respectively.

There is likely to be respite for motorists in the next review due for December 14, due to the current fall in crude price to around $66 a barrel, which ideally should reflect at the pump by then.