KPC names Mwendwa as acting MD after arrest of Sang in importation of substandard fuel probe

KPC names Mwendwa as acting MD after arrest of Sang in importation of substandard fuel probe

The Board of Directors of the Kenya Pipeline Company appointed an acting Managing Director following the arrest of Joe Sang.

The board said it had named Pius Mwendwa (GM-Finance) as acting MD adding it had taken note of the ongoing reports and developments affecting Sang and others.

“The Board is monitoring the situation and is in communication with the relevantbinstitutions to understand the nature and scope of the allegations.”

“We wish to assure our stakeholders, our shareholders and the public that KPC’s operations remain stable and unaffected,” chairperson Faith Boinett said in a statement.

Sang and 15 other officials serving in the Government to Government oil deal were arrested for questioning following revelations there were plans to import substandard fuel into the country.

Those arrested were officials in the Government-to-Government oil deal that had been launched in 2023 and included Principal Secretary for the State Department for Petroleum Mohamed Liban, the Director General of Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Daniel Kiptoo Sang and a top petroleum department official identified as Simon Wafula.

The other 12 were from fuel dealers.

They spent the better part of the day at the DCI headquarters for grilling and were expected to be detained pending possible arraignment on Tuesday, officials said.

Their houses were searched and some money and documents recovered from there, sources said.

There are fears of fuel shortage due to the war in Iran which has affected supplies.

This has forced countries to seek fuel from merchants on the high seas.

Officials said the fuel that Kenya got in the deal to cushion it from possible shortage emerged to be dirty and do not meet specifications of the one used in Kenya.

However, some of the officials in the G-to-G committee are said to have been pushing for it to be offloaded oblivious of the dangers head.

A manager of quality assurance at the Kenya Pipeline Company rejected the fuel after conducting tests.

He came under pressure to allow the offloading the same but rejected the same and escalated the matter.

This led to the operation on Thursday night that saw the arrest of the officials for questioning.

Officials said the quantity of sulphur in the fuel was too high and it was rejected.

This comes as the country is staring at a spike in fuel prices, as the effects of the war in the Middle East begin to bite.

For now, authorities maintain that supply remains stable.

Kenya launched the deal with gulf companies-Saudi Aramco, ADNOC, ENOC to provide a 180-day credit plan for fuel imports to stabilize the shilling, reduce dollar demand and secure supply chain.

Extended to 2027/2028, the deal has cushioned Kenya from price shocks amid criticism.

Current stock levels stand at 16 days for petrol, 19 days for diesel, and 49 days for jet fuel and kerosene, providing short-term cover as additional shipments arrive in April.

“Our suppliers, especially the ones we have a G2G arrangement with, are actually loading from other areas that are not affected like Europe and India,” National Treasury and Economic Planning Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi stated.

As global oil prices climb amid the evolving conflict in the Middle East, the government now concedes that by mid-April, fuel prices are likely to come under pressure.

Mbadi, however, said resources will be deployed to soften the blow and cushion consumers, but only for a limited time.

“The current fuel pricing cycle, March 15, 2026, to 14th April 2026, is not likely to be affected since the product concerned was delivered prior to the Middle East conflict,” said Mbadi.