Kenya Pipeline leakage fix averts fuel shortage

Kenya Pipeline Company managing director Joe Sang. FILE PHOTO | NMG 

By EDWIN OKOTH

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Summary

• Kenya Pipeline Company said the leakage, reported around the Outering Road near Taj Mall was quickly detected and repaired on Friday.
• The firm is expected to complete a new 20-inch pipeline by end of July to replace the leakage-prone line.
• The new line flowing about 1 million litres of fuel per hour is expected to boost  flow rate to about 1.9 million liters per hour by 2023.

Kenya Pipeline Company says a pipe leakage along its Mombasa-Nairobi line has been fixed, allying fears of a possible fuel shortage.

The State corporation said the leakage, reported around the Outering Road near Taj Mall was quickly detected and repaired on Friday.

“Yes we had some leakage in the line from Mombasa to Nairobi but being that it was not active then, the leakage was minimal.  We do not expect any significant damage to the environment yet as the leak was detected early enough and responded to promptly,” said KPC Managing Director Joe Sang.

“Our team has since dealt with it and we have them on the ground to keep monitoring the old line which has been prone to leakages. Supply will go on normally.”

Another leakage was reported Last year at Mazeras in what the firm attributed to a “corrosion defect” on the 39-year old line from Mombasa.

The leakage similarly caused a shortage scare given that the 450km 14-inch diameter pipeline passes about 830,000 litres per hour.

The line, which is running more than 10 years beyond its lifespan, has been prone to defects, a major one in Thange in 2015.

The spill which has led to the agency spending more than Sh200 million in clean-up and compensation to the affected residents also saw the exit of former Acting Managing Director Flora Okoth.

KPC in February said the 278 residents of Thange valley in Kibwezi East Constituency who were affected by oil spillage had submitted claim forms for verification and compensation   through its insurer, CIC Insurance Company.

The firm is expected to complete a new 20-inch pipeline by end of July to replace the leakage-prone line. The Sh48 billion line was expected to be completed in April.

The new line flowing about 1 million litres of fuel per hour is expected to boost  flow rate to about 1.9 million liters per hour by 2023 and 2.6 million liters per hour by 2044 to meet demand for petroleum products for Kenya and the region.

Should the Embakasi leakage be more than the estimated ‘minor’ so far realised, the impact could be huge in an area where most people use underground water aid is densely populated.