Sudan’s energy ministry says that around 30 fuel tankers were waiting to discharge petroleum products at Port Sudan, as authorities sought to calm fears of shortages and rising pump prices in a country already battered by war and economic strain.
The ministry said more than 10 tankers were already berthed at the port awaiting discharge, while another 20 vessels were positioned in the Red Sea waiting their turn, in what officials presented as evidence that fuel supplies remained available despite recent market disruptions.
The announcement followed reports of sudden fuel price increases on Monday in Port Sudan and several other states, moves that triggered public concern before being reversed after government intervention, according to Sudanese media reports.
Sudan’s Ministry of Energy said it no longer sets fuel prices directly, noting that the country adopted a fuel price deregulation policy in 2021. Under that system, the ministry’s role is limited to regulation, estimating national fuel needs, supervising imports to ensure compliance with technical standards, and coordinating distribution to maintain supply.
Officials also said they were in contact with fuel importers and had urged them to keep profit margins as low as possible to reduce pressure on consumers, even as international petroleum prices continue to climb.
The government’s intervention comes at a time when Sudan remains highly vulnerable to external energy shocks. The country depends heavily on imported petroleum products to meet domestic demand, leaving the local market exposed to global price spikes and supply disruptions linked to geopolitical tensions and shipping risks.
According to the ministry, global fuel prices have risen sharply in recent weeks, with gasoline prices climbing from about US$78 to US$245 per barrel, a surge authorities linked to wider geopolitical developments. Under Sudan’s deregulated pricing regime, those higher import costs are increasingly feeding into domestic pump prices.
The situation is unfolding against the backdrop of Sudan’s ongoing civil war, which has devastated large parts of the economy and further weakened already fragile supply chains. Since fighting broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the country has suffered severe disruptions to trade, transport and basic services.
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Although Port Sudan has become the de facto administrative and logistical hub for the army-aligned government, pressure on the city’s infrastructure and supply systems has intensified as conflict has spread elsewhere in the country. Fuel availability has become especially critical for transport, electricity generation, humanitarian operations and the movement of goods.
Earlier this month, Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim warned that the war would have “negative and harsh” consequences for Sudan’s economy, including the risk of shortages in key commodities. He also pointed to the vulnerability of supply routes passing through strategic maritime chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab, both of which are central to global energy shipping.
Any sustained disruption to those routes could have serious consequences for Sudan, where higher fuel costs would likely ripple through transport, food distribution and the broader cost of living. For many households and businesses, already squeezed by inflation, displacement and conflict, even short-term supply shocks can quickly translate into deeper hardship.
For now, the ministry is trying to project reassurance, arguing that the queue of incoming tankers demonstrates that supply is still moving. But the episode has also highlighted the fragility of Sudan’s fuel market, where war, import dependence and global volatility are combining to keep energy security under constant strain.
