A drop in landed costs and the application of the fuel stabilisation allowed the energy regulator to increase the road maintenance levy by Sh7 per litre, without hiking pump prices.
The pricing schedule released last night shows that consumers will now pay the road maintenance levy at a new rate of Sh25 per litre of petrol and diesel from Sh18.
Despite the increment of the levy, pump prices dropped to Sh168.50 per litre of diesel from Sh173.10 while that of petrol dropped to Sh188.84 from Sh189.84 in Nairobi.
The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (Epra) bowed to pressure from the Ministry of Roads and Transport to hike the levy despite promises by immediate former Roads CS Kipchumba Murkomen saying the State will delay plans to hike the levy.
Epra applied a subsidy of Sh3.35 and Sh2.50 per litre of petrol and diesel to cushion consumers from what would have been a rise in fuel prices.
The drop comes at the back of the shilling's rally against the dollar and the global drop in prices of crude and refined fuel.
"The maximum allowed pump price for super petrol, diesel and kerosene decreased by Sh1, Sh1:50 and Sh1:30 per litre respectively," Daniel Kiptoo, the Epra Director General said in a notice on Sunday, July 14, evening.
But the revelation of the higher levy for road maintenance will put the Ministry of Roads on the spot given its earlier promises of delaying the imposition of the higher rate.
The drop in pump prices was also largely driven by a strong shilling as Epra used an exchange rate of 129.06 units to the dollar compared to 132.72 units applied in the schedule that lapsed last midnight.
