Vivo Energy’s revenues in the Kenyan market dipped by $16 million (Sh2.06 billion) in the half year to June 2024, as record high prices of fuel hit demand.
The multinational said its Kenyan unit booked revenues of $769 million (Sh99.16 billion) during the six months, compared to $785 million (Sh101.22 billion) the previous year, marking a marginal two percent drop.
The lower earnings also come despite a strong rally in the value of the shilling against the US dollar during the period. The firm sells fuel in Kenyan shillings and therefore a stronger shilling boosts revenue in US dollars.
The local currency traded at an average of Sh159.7 against the greenback in January before strengthening rapidly by 18.8 percent to a mean of Sh129.6 per unit in June.
The Kenyan unit is Vivo’s second largest by revenue share and is only behind its Moroccan subsidiary.
“We identified Morocco and Kenya as financially significant operating units based on their size compared to the consolidated financial statements of the Group,” said the firm in its annual report.
During the half-year period, Vivo Energy Kenya was the only major reporting segment that took a revenue hit, with the other major units such as Morocco and Senegal recording significant increases.
The six-month period marked historically high fuel prices, forcing some motorists to cut back on consumption.
Fuel prices hit a record high of Sh207.36 per litre for super petrol in Nairobi in January, while diesel and kerosene also hit record highs of Sh196.47 and Sh194.23 respectively.
TotalEnergies, which is listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, recorded an 8.7 percent growth in net revenue during the half-year period.
The oil marketer earned Sh61.6 billion compared to Sh56.6 billion during the same period last year. The higher revenues and a lower tax burden helped it post a net profit of Sh938.5 million, which is a jump of 14.09 percent from Sh822.6 million last year.
Vivo Energy is Kenya’s largest oil marketing company by market share. The company is the local marketer of the Shell brand.
According to data from the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Vivo Energy Kenya had a market share of 22.02 percent as of December 2023. This put it ahead of second-placed TotalEnergies, which had a share of 14.88 percent, while Rubis Energy Kenya closed the top three with a share of 14.05 percent.
Its parent company, Vivo Energy, is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) with a secondary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
