Sudan Protesters Agree To Resumption Of Oil Exports
Sudan’s government has reached an agreement with tribal protesters to allow the resumption of exports of landlocked South Sudan’s crude oil via a terminal on the Red Sea, Sudanese officials said.
Protesters from the Beja tribes in eastern Sudan – demonstrating against what they say is a lack of political power and poor economic conditions in the region – have been blocking roads and forcing Red Sea ports to close in recent weeks.
A government delegation headed by a member of the ruling sovereign council met tribal elders on Sunday and secured a deal to allow oil exports from the Bashayer port, the council said.
“The joint meeting between the government delegation headed by General Shams al-Din Kabashi, a member of the sovereign council, and a delegation from the Beja council reached an agreement on allowing the passage of South Sudanese oil exports through the Bashayer port,” Khartoum’s ruling sovereign council said in a statement late Sunday.
The council did not disclose the terms of the deal – which came hours after senior government officials flew to Port Sudan, the Red Sea trade hub – or give further details.
The governmental delegation led by Kabashi included Oil Minister Gadein Ali Obeid, Foreign Minister Mariam al-Mahdi and others.
They put forward proposals to eventually open all ports and roads leading to the city, which protesters began blocking early last week.
The Beja tribe elders tentatively agreed and said they would need a week to further discuss the initiatives, the statement added.
Bashayer is the main terminal, near Port Sudan, from which landlocked South Sudan’s oil supplies are shipped to global markets.
The Sudanese energy and oil ministry warned on Saturday the port’s oil depots would be completely full in 10 days’ time if the blockage continued. That would, in turn, force South Sudanese oilfields to halt production.
The protesters also forced the closure of a pipeline that carries imported crude to the capital, Khartoum.