Fuel supply woes leave much of Sudan ‘running on empty’

Long queues have been forming at filling stations in Sudan’s Sennar state, as the fuel supply dwindles, and the prices soar. Sources in Sennar say that the fuel shortage has also impacted public transport, compelling many people to walk to work or market.

The director of the Petroleum Department in Sennar, Yasnar Ibrahim, said that stocks of petrol and cooking gas are running low in the state since the last shipment from Post Sudan of just 4,700 gallons. Ibrahim explained that the price of a gallon ranges between SDG7,000 and SDG7,800.

Ibrahim highlighted that the fuel shortage and high process add to the woes of truck owners, who are already facing challenges due to the war.

As reported by Radio Dabanga last week, widespread drinking water scarcity is impacting Sudanese in multiple states as fuel shortages force water plants to shut down, and soaring prices make accessibility challenging for residents—from Khartoum to East Darfur and North Kordofan.

Fuel scarcity in El Obeid is becoming a “serious problem,” with the price of a gallon of fuel reaching SDG25,000, according to sources on the ground.

Beyond fuel concerns, the populace is also contending with soaring prices of essential goods and a deteriorating telecom network, painting a grim picture of the multifaceted challenges confronting the community.

Reports portray an extremely dire humanitarian situation in central and southern parts of Omdurman, with people ‘starving to death‘ in recent weeks.

Water and electricity have been cut off since the beginning of the war in mid-April last year, and communication networks are unavailable. Activists noted that people from Banat, El Arda, and El Morada in Omdurman “sneak into El Abbasiya to fetch water from the only well in the area”.