South Sudan and Sudan have successfully resolved months of challenges surrounding a critical pipeline shutdown, enabling the resumption of oil production in South Sudan. The cooperative effort has paved the way for pre-resumption activities to begin this month, with full production scheduled to commence in early February.
According to a source at South Sudan’s Ministry of Petroleum, production from the Dar Petroleum Operating Company (DPOC) will start at a daily rate of 90,000 barrels per day (bpd) in February. This figure accounts for the technical capabilities of the field and historical production rates, as well as the impact of the prolonged shutdown.
“We are grateful to the government of Sudan for lifting the force majeure, committing themselves to the process and ensuring the pipeline is repaired, and we are grateful to the RSF for allowing the passage of logistics,” said Minister of Petroleum, Puot Kang Chol, in an exclusive interview with Energy Capital & Power.
The technical field work will begin on January 8, as engineers head to the field to start the resumption process. “The engineers are going to the field – from tomorrow, the resumption work shall start. When the shutdown happened, [DPOC] production was 110,000 barrels – we don’t expect to start with this. The engineers shall be working around the clock for us to reach our level that we want to go to.”
While DPOC’s operations were directly affected by the pipeline shutdown, production at South Sudan’s other operators – Sudd Petroleum Operating Company and Greater Pioneer Operating Company – remained stable at a combined rate of approximately 70,000 bpd.
The first cargo of Dar Blend crude oil is expected to be exported in late March or early April 2025, marking a significant milestone in the recovery process.
Looking ahead, the Minister expressed optimism about returning to pre-shutdown production levels, stating, “In less than six months, we should reach our previous levels. It’s a process.”
He also emphasized the broader implications of the resumption for the country’s energy sector. “Now that we have resumed [production], it will build confidence in our investors again so we can get back to the table and negotiate with them and increase our target to a different level altogether.”
The gradual recovery of production levels is expected to strengthen South Sudan’s position as a key oil producer in the region and provide a much-needed boost to the nation’s economy. The pipeline repair and resumption of operations underscore the critical cooperation between South Sudan and Sudan, despite ongoing challenges in the region.
