The owner of the illegal gas storage and refilling facility that exploded last Thursday is the same person who owns another such facility in Laikipia East that was shut down by officials of the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA), the Nation can now reveal.
Investigations show that Maxxis Nyanyuki Energy and Maxxis Nairobi Energy are both owned by Derdols Petroleum Limited.
On Tuesday last week, two workers identified as Mr Ibrahim Mureithi and Christopher Maina at Maxxis Energy Nanyuki were picked up by EPRA officials and arraigned the following day.
Mr Mureithi was charged with refilling/trading in different brands of LPG cylinders without written consent while Mr Maina was charged with transporting filled and empty LPG cylinders by road without a valid license from EPRA.
A day after the duo were arraigned in court, an explosion occurred at Mradi village in Embakassi, which has so far claimed six lives and injured over 300 people.
Until then, nobody knew the identity of the illegal gas storage and refilling facility until the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) revealed that Derdols Petroleum Limited, under the business name Maxxis Nairobi Energy, was seeking to legalise its operations.
"The report was submitted to NEMA on July 29, 2020, as a project report by the project proponent Derdos Petroleum Limited under the business name Maxxis Nairobi Energy and was assigned reference number NEMA/PR/5/2/23790 (PSR 16708)," the statement reads in part.
The project has been classified by NEMA as medium risk under the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Review Amendment Regulations.
On April 25, 2022, several agencies received the EIA project report for sectoral review and comments to guide NEMA in the approval process.
The agencies that received the copy include; EPRA, Director of Physical Planning Nairobi City, Water Resources Authority, Directorate of Occupational Safety and Health, Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company and Director of Urban Planning and Development.
Three months later, after reviewing the project, concerns were raised about land ownership in the area and evidence of consultation with the immediate neighbours of the Nyayo Estate Residents Association (NERA).
In August 2022, the project proponent, through the project's lead environmental assessment expert, responded to the issues that prevented them from obtaining a license.
However, it remains unclear how they were approved, especially by the board of NEMA, which noted with great concern some serious gaps in the issuance of the license. This has led to the suspension of four senior NEMA officials.
Today, neighbours around the plant stayed away, claiming that there was a gas leak similar to the one that occurred last week before the explosion.
Inside the plant, management has issued strict rules on how to operate and behave once inside.
The rules include: leaving all phones in the security room at the gate, making sure you do not have a flammable item such as a matchbox, making sure you are wearing the proper protective gear, and vehicles to be driven at a speed of less than 10 kilometers per hour while drivers must wear their seat belts and make sure the vehicle is facing the gate at all times.
When the Nation team arrived at the plant, Mr Adamson Bungei, the Nairobi County Police Commander, dismissed claims of a leak and urged residents to go about their daily activities as usual.
"Today we have heard your concerns and we have responded with immediate effect. We have mobilised all the teams involved, especially from EPRA, to make sure that the locals who live here are safe. We have inspected the tanks that remain here and we can confirm that none of them contain gas and all of them are empty. They are safe now," he said.
It is worth noting that several businesses around the plant remained closed even as residents fled their homes following the earlier claim of a gas leak.
Studies at Embakasi Primary School and some private schools came to a halt, with pupils asked to go home for fear of another explosion.
Locals who spoke to us said the facility was used as a garage during the day and a gas refilling facility at night.
Ms Jacky Atieno said the filling station was even open to locals who flocked to the premises at night to get their gas cylinders filled.
"However, they do not fill the cylinders and it does not take long before they run out and you have to go back for another refill," she said.
According to her, the night guards at the compound were very busy compared to their counterparts who were on duty during the day.
Mr Jared Nyambega said EPRA must do due diligence before issuing such licenses because many lives are at stake when such important documents are issued incorrectly.
"We are now mentally disturbed and need counselling. Some people have not left their homes since the explosion," he said.
Mr Bungei said detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) were still investigating and arrests would soon be made.
Over the weekend, Mr Wandugi Karathe, Mr Kimathi's lawyer, said his client was not in hiding and was available to assist in the ongoing investigations.
"Our client is willing to cooperate fully with the police in the course of their investigation, but requests that the media refrain from publishing unverified statements that are prejudicial to him," he said.
