NAIROBI Kenya April 8 -Illicit trade in petroleum products is a serious national security threat and new measures need to be established to curb the trade.
The Principal Secretary for Internal Security Dr Raymond Omollo on Monday warned that illegal petroleum facilities, dumping of export petroleum products, adulteration of petroleum products, and siphoning of petroleum products along the highways were emerging security threats.
“The sector continues to harbour rogue business people while some elements within the law and enforcement agencies have been compromised thus the need to enhance intelligence-led enforcement, harden prosecution measures, and capacity building across enforcement agencies,” the PS said.
Dr Omollo said adequate measures had been put in place to protect critical energy infrastructure such as petroleum pipelines and storage facilities from natural disasters, terrorist and cyber-attacks, or sabotage for overall national safety and security.
“Access to reliable, quality petroleum products is deeply intertwined with national security as it influences security operations both in terms of fuel for vehicles and aircraft as well as power for police stations and communication systems, especially in far flung and hard to reach areas not yet connected to the national grid,” the PS said.
According to the PS, the inability to trace the movement of petroleum products presents serious safety concerns to consumers and the public at large, and there was an urgent need to deploy advanced technology for monitoring and surveillance of the supply chain to help in early detection of illicit activities.
“Rogue business people are ever changing their tactics and now leveraging technology to extend their territorial reach. We should not be left behind,” the PS said.
The legal frameworks to impose stricter penalties on those involved in the illicit trade should also be updated and strengthened, according to the ministry.
“This should also include government officials found to have approved illegal facilities or turned a blind eye through corruption to unlicensed facilities and vehicles transporting petroleum products without valid permits,” he said.
The third strategy proposed is educating the public about the dangers of using illegally sourced LPG and petroleum products can help reduce demand for such products.
The other strategy is to train law enforcement and regulatory personnel on the latest techniques for detecting and preventing the illicit trade.
“A dedicated Energy Police Unit (EPU) was already established to provide security to critical petroleum infrastructure and a review can be made to expand the Unit to co-opt all other enforcement,” he said.
The PS also said the fight against the illicit trade requires a multi-faceted approach involving collaboration between government agencies, industry players, the private sector, and the public.
The PS was speaking during the State of the Petroleum and Oil Industry Briefing for the first quarter of 2024 organized by the Petroleum Institute of East Africa (PIEA).
The petroleum industry growth in Kenya has brought with it numerous challenges with the biggest one being the unauthorized refilling sites of petroleum products, specifically LPG.
These sites normally refill cylinders belonging to licensed brand owners illegally with a case and point being the fire tragedy that occurred in the residential area of Mradi Area, Embakasi that claimed people’s lives and left scores injured.
In March last year, the Ministry of Interior together with the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum in liaison with the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA), the EPU, and the DCI, embarked on a Rapid Result Initiative (RRI) on rogue LPG dealers and petroleum businesses.
The RRI aimed to ensure compliance with licensing conditions at LPG and petroleum storage and filling plants and enforce safety measures to minimize the risk of accidents.
Correspondingly, a nationwide registration of all LPG and petroleum businesses was conducted to enhance management and regulation.
As a result, a total of 17,958 LPG and 6,188 petroleum facilities were registered.
“Facilities operating without valid storage and filling licenses, usage of vehicles without permits, refilling of LPG cylinders of other brands without authorization from the brand owners were the most common illegalities found and files forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
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