Kenyan households are likely to pay more for cooking gas next month after international prices of propane and butane, the two main components of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), rose sharply.
Petroleum industry executives said the increase in global LPG costs, linked to supply disruptions caused by renewed conflict in the Middle East, is expected to push up prices in the Kenyan market.
Kenya sources most of its LPG from Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern producers, leaving local prices exposed to changes in international markets.
Data from Saudi Aramco, a major LPG supplier in the Middle East, shows that butane prices rose by 25.8 per cent to $628 (Sh81,326) per tonne, from $499 (Sh64,620.50) in August. Propane prices increased by 23.2 per cent to $494 (Sh63,973) per tonne, from $401 (Sh51,929.50). Saudi Aramco’s LPG contract prices serve as a key benchmark in Middle Eastern and Asia-Pacific markets.
A petroleum sector executive said the higher international prices would be reflected in local retail prices. “LPG prices should go up next month, and this mainly boils down to the Saudi Aramco CP (contract prices). Average prices of butane and propane have significantly gone up this month, and this will affect local prices next month,” the executive of a leading oil marketer said.
The latest increase follows a rise in Kenyan LPG prices earlier this year, when local refilling costs increased by more than Sh390 in May after Saudi Aramco raised its prices amid the Middle East conflict. Prices subsequently eased as tensions cooled.
The latest supply concerns have been linked to disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz and operations at Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port, which has served as an alternative export route. LPG shipments from Yanbu to Asian markets fell from 302,600 tonnes in June to 240,300 tonnes in July and 71,200 tonnes in August. Exports are projected to decline further to about 51,700 tonnes in September.
In Kenya, TotalEnergies Marketing is currently selling a 13-kilogramme cylinder at Sh3,400, compared with Sh3,510 in May, while Rubis Energy is selling the same-size cylinder at Sh3,202.50, down from Sh3,530 in May.
Another oil marketing executive said the broader geopolitical situation was likely to keep putting pressure on local prices. “Right now, with the geopolitical dynamics, the cost is going up, and local prices will definitely increase,” the executive said.
Unlike petrol, diesel and kerosene, whose maximum retail prices are regulated monthly by the State, LPG retail prices are determined by market conditions and individual distributors. The expected increase therefore comes as households continue to face changes in the cost of cooking gas.
The price pressure is also emerging as Kenya expands its LPG storage capacity, with Taifa Gas nearing completion of its import terminal at the Dongo Kundu Special Economic Zone in Mombasa. The Sh16 billion facility is designed to store 30,000 tonnes of LPG in 12 spherical tanks, with provision to expand capacity to 45,000 tonnes.
Despite previous price increases, LPG demand continued to grow in the six months to June 2026, with consumption rising to 248.82 tonnes from 224.52 tonnes during the corresponding period last year.
