Nairobi — A total of nine steel companies have been fined Sh338.9 million by the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) for illegally increasing the cost of steel products.
They include Corrugated Steel Ltd (Sh86.97 million), Tononoka Rolling Mills Ltd (Sh62.72 million), Devki Steel Mills Ltd (Sh46.3 million), and Doshi and Hardware Ltd (Sh41.6 million).
Others are Jumbo Steels Mill Ltd (Sh33.14 million), Accurate Steel Mills Ltd (Sh26.83 million), Nail and Steel Products Ltd (Sh22.82 million), Brollo Kenya Ltd (Sh9.4 million), and Blue Nile Wire Products Ltd (Sh9.16 million).
CAK argues that the above-mentioned companies engaged in cartel conduct whose effect was to increase the cost of homes and infrastructure by raising steel product prices.
As a result, the costs of bars, pipes, beams, and sheets, which account for over 20 percent of the construction cost, went up.
CAK acting Director General Adano Wario said the penalties are proportionate to the offence, specifically for consumers who have been complaining of the high cost of steel products in the country.
Wario stressed that the penalties are meant to restore competition in the sector and deter companies from deploying anti-competitive practises as a business strategy.
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