Has the Cost of Fuel Been Revised to Sh206 as Claimed?

Posts shared here, here and here claim that fuel prices in Kenya have risen to Sh206 per litre.

Background

Rising fuel prices have been witnessed globally as a result of the political instability caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration had been subsidizing fuel since April 2021 in an effort to quell public anger over the rising cost of living. This move however faced pushback from various stakeholders including the International Monetary Fund.

President William Ruto announced his plan to phase out the fuel subsidy in his inauguration speech. “In addition to being very costly, consumption subsidy interventions are prone to abuse, they distort markets and create uncertainty, including artificial shortages of the very products being subsidized,” Ruto said.

Piga Firimbi previously debunked William Ruto’s claim on Ugandan prices being higher than prices in Kenya here.

Verification

The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) revised fuel prices on September 14, 2022, announcing new oil prices after the subsidy was withdrawn. In a Twitter post, the regulator announced a Sh20.18 rise in the cost of super petrol and Sh25 rise in the price of diesel.

The prices in Nairobi are as follows: Super Petrol, Diesel and Kerosene increase by KShs 20.18 per litre, KShs 25.00 per litre and KShs 20.00 per litre respectively.
See press release on >> https://t.co/LJJ0Ee5GvG^BO pic.twitter.com/omZwj4PyP8

— Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (@EPRA_Ke) September 14, 2022

Under the new retail prices, super petrol is set to sell at Sh179.30, Diesel at Sh165 and Kerosene at Sh147.94. See screengrab below.  

The price of Sh206 shared here was the unsubsidized price of diesel for the period between August and September 2022, shared by EPRA in a post on August 14, 2022. See the screen grab below.

Verdict

Claims that fuel prices have risen to Sh206 are FALSE.