SUDAN’S RSF CLAIMS TO HAVE CONTROL OF OIL REFINERY AND POWER STATION
▶ Move would give the paramilitaries firm grip on complex that makes big contribution to nation’s energy supply
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces claim to have seized an oil refinery and power station in Sudan, infrastructure that supplies about 70 per cent and 20 per cent of the country’s fuel and electricity, respectively.
In the capital, Khartoum, witnesses described hearing air strikes and gunfire during a 72hour ceasefire brokered by the US and Saudi Arabia.
The preliminary committee of the Sudan Doctors’ Trade Union said yesterday that four people were killed the day before, the first day of the truce.
The RSF, led by Gen Mohamed Dagalo, on Tuesday posted a video of fighters that claimed the group was in control of Al Jaili Refinery, 70km from Khartoum.
The refinery is part of an energy complex next to the Garri power station, one of Sudan’s largest electricity providers.
An unnamed official said in the video that RSF troops have surrounded an area with a 40km radius around the complex.
“We have 200 per cent control over Sudan,” he said before the clip ends.
Garri power station has a capacity of 500 megawatts of electricity, or nearly 20 per cent of the country’s available supply of about 2,800MW, according to the World Bank. Any disruption of supply there would make a difficult situation for citizens worse.
Before the conflict, electricity production covered less than 60 per cent of demand, according to the US Energy Information Administration.
Khartoum residents said frequent power cuts became more common after fighting began.
The refinery may be more important: according to a 2022 assessment by the International Energy Agency, Sudan’s refined fuel demand was about 150,000 barrels per day, with Al Jaili producing about 100,000 barrels per day of that requirement.
Noam Raydan, a regional energy analyst and research associate at the Washington Institute, said it was vital that rival forces not fight over the refinery.
“If the refinery halts operations, then the question is, how will Sudan address its needs for oil products?” she said, pointing to trading data that showed Sudan makes up a deficit of refined fuel with imports, mainly from Gulf nations.
Sudan’s finances have been under great strain in recent years and, in February, the government said it would struggle to pay public sector wages after passing the 2023 budget, leaving little money for fuel imports.
AFP reported on Tuesday that fuel prices were surging in Khartoum while residents queued at petrol stations to fill their cars.
The US-Saudi-brokered ceasefire is the fourth attempt by the international community to bring a halt to hostilities that have taken the death toll to at least 460.
On Tuesday, the UN Security Council held a meeting at which Sudan’s representative, Al Harith Idris, called on the RSF to stop its attacks on government and essential facilities and infrastructure. “The pause was not fully upheld, with attacks on headquarters, attempts to gain ground, air strikes and explosions in different areas of the capital,” UN Special Representative Volker Perthes told the Security Council on Tuesday.
Mr Perthes said he was keeping contact with both Gen Dagalo and army chief Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan. “There is yet no unequivocal sign that either is ready to seriously negotiate,” Mr Perthes said.
On Monday, Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused the RSF of looting the building that houses joint Sudan-Chad coalition forces.
“The attack destroyed the building … and supplies were looted. The head of the joint forces on the Sudanese side was injured, as well as other members and individuals,” the ministry told the Suna state news agency. “A number of people were also killed and two officers detained.”
The death toll of 460 announced by Sudan’s Ministry of Health is probably an underestimate, as it only includes the number of people in hospitals and mortuaries.
Civilian reports and Sudanese videos seen by The National indicate bodies on the streets of cities across the country..