Kenya: Oil Companies Warn of Shortages after Fire.
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Monday, 05 December 2011 |
Kenya’s fuel distribution system has been affected by two fires at a Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) terminal in Nairobi last week. The accidents, which were quickly handled by emergency services, were further complicated by the presence of a slum village near the site of the fire, and efforts of dwellers to ‘scoop’ fuel for sale to motorists.
On Wednesday, following the second fire, oil companies told local news outlet the Nation that Kenya Pipeline Company was not pumping fuel to their terminals. “Nobody is loading fuel as no pump over is taking place and this is likely to cause a fuel shortage in different parts of the country,” said an oil industry source, speaking on condition of anonymity. The problem the source added, was compounded by an alleged product contamination in western Kenya, which meant most firms were seeking products from Nairobi. “We are already experiencing outages due to the problem in western Kenya and what has happened here in Nairobi is likely to cause a crisis,” he claimed.
KPC’s Managing Director, Selest Kilida, called for calm, and emphasised that the incidents were dealt with quickly. He noted that the cause of the first had not been established.
PetrolWorld 05122011
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