Kenya oil trucking to resume on August 22
Monday August 13 2018
Trucks loaded with crude oil from Lokichar headed to Mombasa. Barely a month after President Uhuru Kenyatta launched the EOPS in Turkana on June 3, bandit attacks between the Turkana and Pokot communities forced transporters of the crude to halt operations. PHOTO | JARED NTAYAYA | NMG
The trucking of crude oil from South Lokichar to the storage facility in Mombasa is scheduled to resume on August 22, Petroleum Cabinet Secretary John Munyes has said.
The trucks stopped ferrying crude in June due to security concerns, as the community sought to have their demands for security and equity in resource-sharing addressed.
Tullow Oil and its partners halted transportation of the oil after Turkana residents blocked roads, demanding that their grievances be heard.
Mr Munyes said the stalemate has cost the government $40 million in losses.
Now, a dispute resolution mechanism has been put in place to avoid future interruptions, with August 7 gazettement of the Turkana Grievance Management Committee and the Inter-Ministerial (Escalation and Support) Committee.
The teams are supposed to ensure any future disputes are resolved amicably by evaluating the community’s concerns and making recommendations for addressing them
Tullow Kenya managing director Martin Mbogo said employees who had been evacuated from the oilfields had been mobilised to move back to Lokichar.