Scandal rocks KPC - Coldtusker told you...

Coldtusker has been vindicated (again)... I have been accused by many 'blind, dumb & deaf' folks of being overly critical of government (owned/controlled) institutions & agencies...

I blogged on the fishiness at the KPC... yep!

I may not be the #1 fan of Oil Marketers but I prefer competition (free markets) rather than corrupt & inefficient government bureaucrats running the show...

KPC has been feeding the gullible media, some (moronic) Kenyans & Oil Marketers with false information about the levels of fuel stocks in Kenya Oil Storage Facilities (KOSF) as well quantities at their depots & in the pipeline...

Kenyans/government/idiots blamed Oil Marketers for the recent fuel shortages... well, it turns out there was a real shortage because the so-called fuel is missing!!! Yes, KPC can't account for 56,000,000 litres... (no 56 or 560 or 5,600 or 56,000)... worth Kes 7,000,000,000 (Seven Billion)... Kaput... Abracadabra...

No wonder there was a fuel shortage... KPC says it was there... but it is not... so where is it now?
Was it ever there?

(BTW, the KPC owns the KOSF storage tanks & since that is the only option for Oil Marketers, Banks/Financiers, etc... so there was no choice but use KPC)

Engen (a private Oil Marketer) complained that Triton (politically connected & always favoured by KPC) has not delivered Engen's share of the fuel stocks Engen already paid for... My sources tell me most Oil Marketers are in the same boat... since they had to buy the (non-existent) stocks from Triton due to OTS rules...

So...no wonder there was a shortage!!! And the government blamed/claimed Oil Marketers were 'hoarding'... WTF??? How do you hoard what you don't have!!! (Please remember these are government employees who like hoarding my taxes in their pockets)

Now there are silly proposals to:
- Introduce price controls (bad, bad idea)
- Give NOCK (another inefficient 100% gov't owned firm) the right/guarantee to import 30% of Kenya's fuel requirements rather than compete vs the rest of the importers. What if NOCK negotiates prices that are say a little over market... the difference going to some politician's bank account in Cayman?

Do I smell scandal & corruption if the proposal were to pass? YES.

Additional Links:

Triton's political connections

Why corruption thrives at KPC & benefits accruing to political appointees
KPC lied about Fuel Stocks (Missing/Stolen fuel)

Triton - KPC alledgely in cahoots with Triton

It seems that Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) lent $24mn to Triton to buy petroleum supplies under the OTS. The products were held by Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) as 'custodian' for KCB's interests.

Now... it seems some corruption (or incompetence) within KPC meant the stocks were released to Triton without KCB's approval... So Triton sold the stocks... pocketed the cash... and split!!!

So KCB went to court to freeze the assets of Triton... and if KPC does not pony up the cash... then KCB will probably sue KPC...

I still can't believe that some (misguided) Kenyans believe KPC should remain 100% in government hands!

Solution: Sell the Triton stations asap to NOCK (or another buyer) through TRANSPARENT means. Pay off as many debts as possible with the proceeds. Put out an international arrest warrant for the 'owners'. Sack, arrest & charge the chaps who authorised the 'release' of the products. Seize their assets since corruption was likely in this matter.

Start the process to privatize KPC.

Where hither the Kenya Shilling?

What do you guys/gals think where the Kenya Shilling will head versus the basket of forex currencies (USD, Yen, GBP, Euro)....

I don't understand the reason (except the 'safe haven' argument) for the strength of the US$... The US gov't (thru the Fed & Treasury & other agencies) will pump (since Aug 2008) in $1,000,000,000,000 (almost 6% of the USA's GDP) into the system by June 2009....

Whereas I do not expect inflation to be a problem since the 'extra' cash will be negated in part by:

• lower interest rates on loans
• lower housing costs
• lower fuel/energy costs
• reduced salaries (loss of jobs or no more increases)
• discounting of merchandise/food

I still wonder if the US$ can sustain it's strength vs other currencies... of course, these guys (UK, Europe, Japan) are not much better off either!

China is a wild card... or the joker?

Please provide your thoughts... and guidance... and ideas...

Coldtusker is Twittering

Just a fad or another tool? Or am I just a Twit... thanks to Ryan Shen-Hoover of Investing In Africa.

Anyway you can fine me twittering on www.twitter.com/coldtusker

Novelty in the airline industry - airtime for flights!

Will it survive (buy airtime & redeem for flights!) but leave the private sector to think of ideas... smart or dumb... who is to say?

www.flyairtime.co.za

Government bureaucrats would never allow for real progress! Simply no imagination!

Kenya Ferries Ltd - Ferries stall - Deja Vu

I told you so... yes, I, coldtusker, warned Kenyans... "Warped Priorities at KFS"

2 of the 3 ferries were out of order at Likoni today... And trust me... the way things are going, I expect one to sink soon... which is bad news for tourism...

Solution:

- Either privatise KFS which means charging the passengers (or subsidizing the KFS).
- Build a bridge or tunnel asap!!!

CBK governor & his pies in the sky (and a MONSTER story)

The CBK governor (ndungu) was mouthing off idiotic growth numbers (7%) earlier in the year after the Post-Election Violence while his more sensible colleuage Prof. Ryan was counseling caution (2-3%).

Well... it turns out that Ryan's estimates will be far closer to the truth... especially with inflation in the 20% region... and this AFTER the state subsidies for maize kicks in...

BTW... How many axles does this 128-tyre monster have?
Do you think the (corrupt) police officers will ask for a 128,000 bribe to let it through?

Kenyan Government Officials overpaid?

Are 'top' government officials in Kenya overpaid?

(Keep in mind the US economy even in its 'diminished' state is 1,000x larger than Kenya's...)

This includes the Executive, Legislative & Judicial branches...

Check this link out...

American Government Salaries

Government Blunders/Corruption continues in Fuel Shortages in Kenya

The Government of Kenya (GoK) does PR well... or is it that many Kenyans are gullible or just stupid?

It seems the Oil Marketers have not done a good job highlighting their side of the story probably fearing retribution.

Here are a couple of stories that highlights the idiocy in GoK & its entities.

Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) stops pumping fuel from Mombasa to Nairobi while Nairobi faces fuel shortages!

KPC has further hitches in pumping fuel from Mombasa to Inland depots.

Politically connected firm, Triton, hogs space at the Mombasa fuel depot delaying offloading of fuel imported by other firms.

And what bullshit is this? Ngumbao Kithi & Jane Akinyi claim there has been no fuel shortage at the Coast for 2 weeks... I beg to differ! There were some towns (Watamu & Kilifi) that were as dry as a desert at least once since 15 Dec 2008. Were these journalists bribed or idiots?

Now in Tanzania... a failed government airline that needs constant bailouts while KQ (privatized) remains profitable in a tough environment. Precision Air (49% owned by KQ) remains profitable & is expanding.

I hope KPC & KPRL is fully privatized. Soon. Transparently.

France's First Ladies...

Just to brighten my (erm, your) 2009... 

Top - Rama Yade is France's Minister for Human Rights.

Left - Rachida Dati is France's Minister for Justice.

Right - Carla Bruni is France's First Lady.

Sarkozy sure knows how to choose them!

(Kenya's equivalents would be... (a) Human Rights... hakunaaa... (b) martha karua (c) lucy kibaki)