Affordable Cooking Gas Brings Relief
For the first time since July 2023, Kenyan households will be able to purchase domestic gas at a lower price following the elimination of an 8% Value Added Tax (VAT) on the essential product.
Depending on location and product brand, a 13-kilogram Liquefied Petroleum Gas retails for between Ksh2,800 and Ksh3,200 at the current market price.
Similarly, the price of a 6-kilogram cylinder of culinary gas varies between Ksh890 and Ksh1,010, depending on market conditions and distance from the depot.
Previously, merchants charged approximately Ksh1,350 for 3 kilograms of cooking gas and Ksh3,500 for 13 kilograms of LPG. These were the market’s lowest prices.
Director-General of the Energy Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) Daniel Kiptoo stated that prices will continue to decrease as companies continue to restock and bring in more products.
EPRA Director-General Daniel Kiptoo told journalists, “The cost of refilling gas cylinders has decreased due to the elimination of taxes.”
The new prices are based on the provisions of the Finance Act of 2023, which exempted domestic gas from the 8% Value-Added-Tax (VAT) and other levies that had previously rendered it unaffordable for average households.
Finance Act 2023 eliminated the 3.5 percent Import Declaration Fees and the 2.0 percent Railway Development Levy on domestic gas, fulfilling a promise made by President William Ruto.
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Finance Act 2023 states in part, “The tax rate shall be zero in the case of a zero-rated supply of liquefied petroleum gas, including propane.”
On Friday, February 24, President Ruto pledged that his administration would make affordable domestic gas available to all Kenyan households.
“Each household in Kenya will have access to culinary gas, and we will reduce gas prices by eliminating all taxes on cooking gas.
Ruto stated, “so that we can ensure that every household in the Republic of Kenya has access to gas for cooking and we can eliminate the use of wood fuel, thereby addressing health concerns and restoring our environment.”
During the inauguration of the Women Fund at KICC on Thursday, March 2, Ruto also announced that the price of a 6kg gas cylinder will be reduced from Ksh 2,800 to Ksh 300 as a result of the implementation of the Finance Act 2023.
“A 6kg cylinder currently costs approximately Ksh2,800, but with the subsidy, the price will drop to approximately Ksh500 in the next fiscal year beginning in July of this year.”
“I have stated that beginning in June, we will implement measures to ensure that women utilize renewable energy. The first step will be to eliminate the gasoline levy. This 8% government tax will be eliminated so that more Kenyans can have access to petroleum, he said.
Affordable Cooking Gas Brings Relief
