South Sudan Seeks Oil Investors as Sudan’s Warring Forces Control Export Routes

South Sudan is seeking investors for 14 oil exploration blocks and wants to raise production from about 170,000 barrels a day.

Its oil exports travel through neighboring Sudan to reach the Red Sea, leaving the country dependent on routes affected by Sudan’s civil war.

The Sudanese army and the paramilitary RSF control different parts of the export network, and South Sudanese troops protect an oil installation at Heglig.

A September account said Juba pays $4 per barrel to the RSF and $7 to the army-aligned government in transit charges.

These payments matter because fees help sustain the forces, while new investment could add oil to a trade that pays both sides.

South Sudan’s other export pipeline has also been disrupted by fighting, and a 2024 shutdown was followed by an estimated 24% contraction in the country’s economy in fiscal 2025.

Investors are due to hear South Sudan’s plans at a conference in Juba at the end of the month, but new funding cannot guarantee safe passage through Sudan.