The Board of Directors of Kenya Pipeline Company Limited (KPC) is aware of, and takes extremely seriously, recent media reports and statements by National & Makueni County Government officials, and by elected leaders, expressing concerns regarding the spillage of fuel from the newly commissioned Mombasa-Nairobi pipeline (Line 5) at Kiboko, Makueni County, and the potential negative effects of this spillage on the Kiboko community, especially on the community’s access to safe drinking water.
The Board regrets deeply the spillage. The leak that led to the spillage was neither expected nor anticipated, given that this is a newly commissioned line that has been in operation for nearly one year, and is operating consistently and satisfactorily at the design rate of transporting 1 million litres per hour. KPC Management are working to establish the cause of the leak, and on the back of these findings will undertake action to ensure non-recurrence.
These findings and remedial actions will be made public. In the meantime, the Board notes and commends the KPC Management’s fast action in mobilising resources to repair the leak.
As a matter of record this repair work took exactly 14 hours 48 minutes from when the leak was first reported to KPC on the morning of March 30, 2019 at 11:20am, to when transport of fuel resumed after repair in the early hours of March 31, 2019 at 02:08am. At no time were fuel supplies to the country in danger of being disrupted
The Board has also endorsed the agreement reached between the
Managements of the Water Resources Authority (WRA), which is the body legally mandated to ensure Kenyans have access to clean, safe and reliable water, and KPC on Wednesday May 15 2019 on how the two organisations will jointly and urgently conduct further tests to establish the extent of the spillage, and whether or not water sources for the community have been contaminated.
Should it turn out that these water sources have indeed been contaminated KPC will work with WRA to restore and safeguard the integrity of the Kiboko community’s water supply
The Board reiterates that KPC will always, promptly and to the full extent required comply with rules and regulations issued from time to time by regulatory and other agencies mandated by law to issue such rules and regulations.
Accordingly, the Board fully supports Management’s resolve to comply with the WRA’s cautionary notice regarding supply of drinking water to the Kiboko community.
As a matter of urgency KPC Management are working with the National and Makueni County Governments to establish the optimal way of supplying the community with clean water.
The Board assures the residents and leaders of Kiboko, and Kenyans as a whole, of its determination that any adverse consequences of this spillage are dealt with decisively.
The Board is also determined to get to the reasons why this spillage occurred and is committed to ensuring that whatever remedial action is required will be undertaken, and further that such action will be made known to the Kenyan people.
