Rwanda Utilities and Regulatory Authority (RURA) has disclosed it is in consultations with different players to review cooking gas prices, which are skyrocketing in the wake of the volatility on the international market. Complaints over rising prices of cooking gas have been growing among citizens, vendors and suppliers alike. When The New Times visited Nyarugenge District Business Centre on Tuesday, prices had risen to Rwf1,400 per kilogramme, up from Rwf1,200 in December 2021. Some vendors have closed shop due to a severe dip in sales as supplies from dealers dwindle, whereas others have maintained smaller stocks. Given the instability on the international market, which is partly attributed to the Ukraine conflict, RURA’s decision is expected to revise the prices upwards, according to different observers. In order to help stabilize prices on the local market, some have called for government subsidies. “Raising the prices further will hurt demand,” said Israel Kwizera, a gas vendor at Nyarugenge market. Gas supplies, he added, have reduced significantly. “We have been ordering for the gas since morning and we haven’t gotten it,” he added. Another vendor, Charles Rwakayiro, called for a clearer explanation on the situation, saying that; “Suppliers point to the high logistical costs involved in shipping cooking gas to Rwanda, others say that it is because of the war in Ukraine.” The biggest gas suppliers in the country declined to comment about the issue with most of them telling The New Times that they were locked in consultations with RURA and can’t conduct any media engagements before a final decision is reached. New prices coming in ‘few days’ Contacted for a comment, Alexis Mutware, the General Manager of Energy, Water and Sanitation at RURA, said that; “Currently, there are ongoing consultations with different stakeholders to assess how these prices can be revised in a way favourable to the consumers and the business people as well. So, we hope to release a new module of prices very soon,” he told The New Times in an interview. He clarified that the spike in cooking gas prices was driven by the volatility of prices on the international market, asserting that one metric tonne had risen from $770 to $920 from February to March 2022. The regulator has the mandate to set the cooking gas prices monthly, unlike for petrol prices which are set quarterly.
