Watts Up Magazine wattsup magazine online | Page 10

The seals are carefully
opened and most times the
tracking system is hacked
in a well coordinated
manner
KENYA OIL INDUSTRY
STRUGGLES TO SEEK A
SOLUTION
By Staff Writer
A
s The Energy Regulation Commission grapples with fighting
fuel adulteration, its decision to stop the night transport of
fuel products hit a raw nerve with the transport truck drivers.
The action that would have reduced the incidences of oil siphoning
along the highway was met with resistance. Our WattsUp team
investigated the cause and effect.
The truck owners had no problem with this directive, the challenge
was with the truck drivers who are deeply entrenched in this vice.
When a truck leaves the various depots to the fueling stations
where over 70 % of the vice happens. 20 % of all truck parked on
the highway between Nairobi and Malaba are known to siphon fuel.
10
WATTS UP MAGAZINE APR - MAY 2017
Even during the day, jerricans are often seen changing hands and
one can fuel from jerricans at these stops along the highway.
At night these trucks are known to go into hideouts not more than
a kilometer away from the highway where there are underground
tanks in maize plantations or even homes. The seals are carefully
opened and at most times the tracking system is hacked in a well-
coordinated manner. The tracking headquarters believe the truck
is still on course on but in actual fact the truck has been diverted
into a plantation!