Reprieve for Kenyans as Cooking Gas Prices Drop

A spot check by KNA conducted at major gasoline stations and retail distributors of cooking gas in Migori town revealed that the price of cooking gas has dropped.

The majority of the gas traders noted that the price slash is attributed to the removal by the government of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) levies. Prices for refilling 13-kg and 6-kg cylinders have fallen below Sh3, 000 and Sh1, 500 for the first time since May this year.

Initially, the cooking gas marketer in Migori County was charging Sh3,500 and Sh1,500 for the 13 and 6 kilogrammes of the product, respectively.

During the month of July, after the taxes were removed, the gas market took a turn where the 13-kg cylinder was going for Sh2,800 while the 6-kg Meko gas was retailing at Sh1,350,  translating to a cost reduction of 20 and 10 percentage points, respectively.

Evans Otieno, a retail store owner in Migori town, said that the reduction in liquefied petroleum gas prices can be attributed to the global decrease in oil prices. This has in turn enabled an increase in the production of LPG and domestic supply across the country.

Otieno said that the price of liquefied petroleum gas in Migori County has dropped drastically between the months of May and July. “The cost of refiling gas cylinders has gone down mainly due to the removal of taxes,” said Otieno.

Julius Ochieng, a hotel manager who uses gas to cook, could not hide his joy when he found out that the price to refill a gas cylinder had decreased.